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Bird Banding: a Fundamental Model to Ecology
No full text1 Broadside. 48"W x 36"HWorking with experienced bird banders and handling birds has broadened my understanding of ecology, conservation and advocacy. My experience at both banding sites has revealed major frustrations with government funding. Currently, bird banders all around the U.S have seen significant limitations in volunteer work and educational opportunities. My literature review portion explored the key milestones that led to the unification and standardization of the bird banding process. There remains concerning trends of bird injury, stress, illness and mortality. Aspects of uncertainty extends to data connectivity and technological monitoring and driving home our responsibility over human disturbances to bird habitats and survival. Various developments and destruction of bird banding sites threaten the progress of bird bandings’ success and usefulness as a process to conservation and research.Kalamazoo College. Department of Biology. Diebold Symposium, 202
Migration and Immigrant's Rights : a Personal Reflection and Historical Analysis
No full text57 p.Throughout the relatively short history of the United States, the question of how migrants are accepted, integrated, and naturalized has been a major source of contention. Since the early days of migration, White Americans, government legislation and law enforcement have associated whiteness and racial purity with the identity of the United States. As such, established migrants from Western and Northern Europe have long bristled as non-white migrants attempt to immigrate and make lives for themselves in the United States. I believe this stems in part from a
fear of losing the whiteness connected with America, and a belief that immigration of other ethnic groups would change what being American entails. Additionally, in a trend which can be followed from the Bracero program until today, immigration control has focused heavily on the policing of undocumented workers, while the American economy continues to profit from migrant workers. Both the 1952 and 1965 acts failed to address abuse of undocumented labor, and these companies continue their exploitation and discrimination which impacts both undocumented and native workers alike. In totality, a distrust of immigrants of color as well as an ideal of a white America has led to a rocky relationship with migration throughout American history, with legislative reforms proving only marginally effective in remedying the underlying problems which continue to characterize the field. Based on both a historical analysis of major occurrences and trends in immigration law
and my limited experience in the field, I have identified the following areas in which large strides must be made to make immigration more equitable in the United States. Firstly, I believe companies which continue to encourage undocumented migration to work for little pay need to be held accountable in a meaningful way. Past legislation has attempted to accomplish this mainly through fines; however, these fines are often too insignificant to deter larger companies from the profits to be made through cheap undocumented labor. For this reason, I think the threat of debilitating criminal prosecution and public admissions of guilt from company officials may be more successful in the future. Although companies may often offer scapegoats to take blame, the public pressure for reform itself may prove to be a more significant deterrent than simple fines. Secondly, I believe naturalization needs to be more easily accessible to undocumented migrants present in the United States. Both the 1965 Naturalization Act and the DACA Executive Action have worked towards this goal but have fallen short in many regards. The maintenance of a second class of American resident in the form of undocumented migrants opens the door for continued abuse and marginalization. Only naturalization and security can lead to more equitable outcomes. While these recommendations alone are by no means a cure to the complicated set of issues involved in Immigration reform, I do believe they are important steps to improve the experience of migrants and settled Americans alike
The Process-Utopian Method for Feminist Praxis : Exploring Examples within Abolition and Decolonial Feminist Theory
No full text86 p.This project began with the initial question: what does feminist praxis look like outside of academia? Praxis is defined as "the process of using a theory or something that you have learned in a practical way." It can also be characterized as having an understanding of how action and theory shape one another. Feminist praxis follows the same definition as praxis above but is also distinguished by "the process of moving from feminist values into actions based on those values." I define feminist praxis as the actions, thought-processes, and relationships formed with the intention of recognizing the way that gender and sexuality structure society and culture and interact with other systems of oppression, combined with an attempt to create new systems and worlds. In this SIP, I argue that process utopian methods are a form of feminist praxis that are represented in socio-cultural space and accompanying material conditions of specific sites. A process-utopian method is an approach to creating new worlds and systems which centers the continuous development of these new systems and processes over a goal. Process-utopias are the imagining of a new system or world that emphasizes the skills and experiences gained while reaching for that goal rather than the goal itself. This is demonstrated by the versatile and varied examples investigated in this SIP which are framed using the Abolition Feminist Transformative Justice Framework and Decolonial Feminist Theory. These demonstrations include the following case study examples of process utopian methods and my personal reflection on their application: a redefinition of citizenship, The Combahee River Collective (then and now), spatial tagging, the Nhanga method, and the Palestinian Feminist Collective 2023 calendar
What To Do With All This Junk : A Qualitative Study of The Heidelberg Project and Its Impact in Detroit
No full textvi, 64p.The Detroit Institute of Arts as well as the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History are popular destinations for tourists and those interested in the arts. Yet, another popular tourist destination is located in the McDougall-Hunt neighborhood on the east side. The Heidelberg Project is a one-block stretch of road that transformed blighted properties and found objects into an artistic installation. Since it was created in 1986, the Heidelberg Project has attracted over 200,000 visitors annually. At one point, the Project encompassed over a dozen different properties along the street. After learning about the Heidelberg Project, I became increasingly interested in the effect the Project has had on the community after 37-years. What has been the impact of the Heidelberg Project on the McDougall-Hunt neighborhood and the City of Detroit? To answer this question, I conducted eleven qualitative interviews with individuals from Detroit and Hamtramck to learn more about the legacy and perception of the Heidelberg Project almost forty years after it was originally created. Though many people did not like the presence of the Heidelberg Project at first, as the installation has changed throughout the years many people have learned to accept it. However, the presence of the Project within the neighborhood has caused some negative effects which are still present today
Coursera Online Skills Building Experience
No full text7 p.For my Senior Integrated Project, I took two online courses on Coursera that accounted for 50 hours. With the completion of these courses, I received online certificates acknowledging my completion and understanding of the material. The two courses I took were Successful Negotiation: Essential Strategies and Skills from the University of Michigan and Financial Markets from Yale University. Throughout the process of completing these courses, I read articles, watched videos, and engaged in interactive lessons. Tests were conducted weekly, and a final examination was taken with 80% accuracy needed for certification to be issued. Coursera offers a vast range of courses with the emphasis of learning at your own pace. The platform's specialization, professional certificates, and affordability was ultimately the driving factor for me pursuing this project under Coursera. I carefully chose these courses based on what I believe to be valuable knowledge in the business world. I've taken classes that have touched on financial markets and negotiation and persuasion and wanted to expand my knowledge and understanding of these lessons through more learning
HEPATITIS B: Drug Bound State Analysis
No full text1 Broadside. 48"W x 36"HThe purpose of this research is to better understand and investigate the five different drug bound states of the Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) and how they relate to the two differing strains. The intended outcome for the research project is to further the development of preventing infection of Hepatitis B through improved knowledge of virus classification and enhancing current antiviral drugs. Hepatitis B was chosen to research due to its icosahedral symmetry and unique behavior. Oftentimes the capsid protein (cp) is analyzed rather than the full capsid due to its identical behavior and increased simplicity. The HBV cp is 183 amino acids long, but is truncated at amino acid 149 and mutated to have a cysteine as its 150th amino acid along with replacing the other native cysteines with alanines to help with stability.Kalamazoo College. Department of Biology. Diebold Symposium, 202
A Marketing Internship With Reaching Higher Incorporated
No full text20 p.Over the course of my college career at Kalamazoo College, I have always been drawn towards three things: creativity, business, and mental health awareness. A marketing internship at Reaching Higher Incorporated done over the summer between my junior and senior year provided me with these things. A non-profit organization based in Southeast Michigan whose mission is to build leadership skills and help with mental health issues in youth and adults through schools and businesses. By volunteering to help teach the Reaching Higher “4 Youth” at Hartland Middle School, I was able to apply psychology concepts to the students I was helping get through various issues at home and at school. By working as a marketing team member, for over 90 hours, I was able to use creative outlets such as Canva to design campaigns and advertising materials while putting my knowledge of various business concepts to use and offer a more modern take on the world and target audience to a company that has been around for decades. Upon putting these two aspects of my career together, I was able to redesign the student class handbook both contextually and aesthetically for future classes. I was also able to design advertisements for benefit fundraiser events, such as a golf-outing and annual gala, for the organization. Over the course of my experience, I learned a large amount about myself on a personal level as well as a professional level and my preferences and my goals for my career ahead of me
The Nicotine Plague in College Life of Kalamazoo
No full text19 p.Nicotine addiction among college students remains a complex and understudied phenomenon, despite its prevalence and potential long-term effects. This research project addresses the notable gap in the literature by examining nicotine addiction in the form of vaping on students at Kalamazoo College. This study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the overall well-being, academic performance, and social dynamics associated with nicotine addiction, and is guided by the following research questions: First, to investigate the long-term health implications and risks linked to nicotine addiction in college students. Second, to explore the correlation between the prevalence of nicotine addiction among college students and its impact on their academic performance and general well-being. Last, the study analyzes the extent to which nicotine use influences social interactions and relationships within the Kalamazoo College community. To bridge the gap in knowledge, this research is guided by an anonymous survey distributed among the Kalamazoo College student body, to collect data on the patterns of nicotine use. Three anonymous interviews were conducted with known nicotine addicts, providing valuable insights into the personal experiences and social dynamics associated with addiction. By combining these methods, this study offers a thorough examination of the complex relationship between nicotine addiction and college students' lives which demonstrates the need for targeted intervention and support within the campus community
Heckscher-Ohlin Model : A Theoretical Examination on Capital and Labor Movement in 2-Country Case --The United States and Vietnam
No full text23 p.International outsourcing in the past few decades has emerged as a common practice among developed countries that outsource production to third-world countries whose labor cost is just a fraction of what they pay at home. Firms often choose labor-intensive industries when utilizing this service abroad. In Vietnam, many American textile firms allocate more capital to the Vietnamese labor force for a cheaper cost. This paper seeks to analyze this instance with the use of the Heckscher-Ohlin Model in an attempt to give recommendations to the Vietnamese economy regarding this popular phenomenon. This paper first gives an overview of the Heckscher-Ohlin Model together with international outsourcing along with a more in-depth analysis of the practice of outsourcing in the United States and Vietnam. By analyzing the capital and labor movement between two countries in the textile industry, this paper hopes to shed light on the practice that is long believed to be beneficial for the economy. The conclusion of this paper recommends that even though providing outsourcing services to developed countries might have promising advantages such as an increase in GDP or employment rate, overuse of this practice will eventually result in consequences that could potentially be detrimental to the textile industry of Vietnam in specific, and the entire country’s economy in general
Into the Ravenwood
No full textix, 71 p.The author introduces the inspiration and themes in the original fantasy novella, as well as the process and hopes to expand the story to a full-realized, multiple perspective novel