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TELLING THEIR STORIES: SHIFTING TO EMPATHETIC, COMMUNITY-BASED STRATEGIES FOR NONPROFIT FUNDRAISING
No full textThis fundraising handbook explores an empathy-based, community-centered approach to nonprofit fundraising, emphasizing inclusivity, emotional connection, and meaningful engagement with communities being served. It demonstrates how nonprofits can build deeper relationships by prioritizing the lived experiences of their communities and fostering a respectful and understanding environment. Empathy-driven fundraising moves beyond traditional donor-centered models, focusing on authentic, person-centered interactions. By centering the needs of both attendees and donors, nonprofits can cultivate a culture of giving rooted in trust, compassion, and shared values. This approach highlights communication, transparency, and reflection in fundraising efforts, ensuring that organizations raise funds while building long-term, meaningful relationships. This handbook is the result of applied humanities research conducted for an Honors service-learning thesis in partnership with Drag Story Hour-Arizona (DSH-Az). The research is based on a literature review, internship experiences, a community survey, and analysis of past DSH-Az fundraising events. This handbook provides practical tools for nonprofits like DSH-Az to implement empathetic, community-based fundraising principles. By utilizing inclusive, responsive practices, nonprofits can increase their impact and foster lasting engagement with their communities. Ultimately, this work demonstrates that successful fundraising is not just about raising money—it's about building connections that empower communities, honor their voices, and foster shared purpose
THE EFFECT OF RESOURCE INVESTMENT STRATEGY AND BUSINESS MODEL STRUCTURE ON VALUE CREATION IN RETAIL COMPANIES
No full textIntroduction: Barney's Resource-Based View theory and Porter's Value Chain Analysis are key theories in researching business resource investment strategy and business model structure. Understanding how they could work in tandem is important to provide further insight into these topics. This will be a preliminary study given the limited data availability. Objective: The primary objective of this study was to better understand the practical implications of Barney's Resource-Based Value theory and Porter's Value Chain Analysis when used together. Methods: A case study approach was employed to evaluate the connection between resource investment strategy and business model structure on value creation. The three cases were in the retail pet specialty industry (PetSmart LLC, Petco The Health and Wellness Co., and Chewy Inc.). Given the small sample size, this is a preliminary study. Results: This study found that resource investments that provide higher levels of competitive advantage may generate increased customers and profit. Secondly, resource investments utilized for primary value chain activities could produce stronger value creation effects (customer and profits). Finally, valuable resources that offer sustained competitive advantages and are invested in primary value chain activities could have the most impact on acquiring customers and increasing profit. Discussion: Companies could benefit from investing in resources that have the potential to offer sustained competitive advantages and utilizing them to strengthen primary activities. By doing so, they may benefit from increased profit and customers. Additionally, companies could benefit from prioritizing omnichannel integration as it might allow them to maximize revenue and improve customer experience
EXERCISE-MOBILIZED NK CELLS IMPROVE THE EFFICACY OF CYTOKINE-INDUCED MEMORY-LIKE NK CELLS
No full textNatural Killer (NK) cells are a promising immunotherapy to treat leukemia relapse due to their innate cytotoxicity and low treatment-related toxicity. However, persistence and sustained cytotoxicity in vivo remain a challenge. Overnight activation with interleukin (IL) 12, IL-15, and IL-18 generates cytokine-induced memory-like NK (CIML NK) cells. These cells show enhanced cytotoxicity and improved persistence in vivo. Ongoing clinical trials have shown promise with CIML NK cells with high-risk leukemia patients, however, prolonged anti-tumor activity still remains an issue. Acute bouts of exercise have demonstrated a five-fold increase of NK cells in peripheral circulation with highly enriched gene-sets to promote cytotoxicity. Here we investigated whether exercise mobilized NK cells (NKx) enhance production and function of CIML NK cells (CIML NKx). Four healthy donors performed a 20 minute bout of graded exercise on a cycle ergometer with blood samples taken at rest and during the last two-minutes of exercise. NK cells were then isolated from rest (NK) and exercise (NKx) time points, which were each stimulated with the IL-12, IL-15, and IL-18 combination overnight to produce resting CIML NK cells and CIML NKx cells. These were then injected into leukemic-bearing xenogeneic mice to assess in vivo persistence and graft vs leukemia (GvL) effects. Therapeutic treatment with CIML NKx cells exhibited enhanced engraftment, delayed and reduced tumor burden (via bioluminescence imaging (BLI)), increased tumor-free survival and improved overall survival when compared to treatment with CIML NK. These findings suggest improved function and survival with therapeutic use of cytokine stimulated NK cells generated from exercise
NAVIGATING THE TUCSON COMMUNITY
No full textNavigating the Tucson Community: A Digital Archive of Community Engagement Around Tucson, AZ is a public-facing honors thesis research project rooted in over four years of relationship-building, volunteering, and experiential learning across Tucson. This digital archive documents my diverse community engagement experiences throughout my senior year at the University of Arizona. As part of my research on health and wellness resources in Tucson, I have collaborated with local organizations, explored community initiatives, and examined the structural challenges impacting access. Through this work, I have identified recurring themes in my community engagement, such as the role of food and movement. This archive not only serves as a record of my experiences but also as a resource for other University of Arizona students seeking to make a meaningful impact in their communities. Whether you're a student, educator, organizer, or visitor, this project models how to listen closely, show up consistently, and build trust over time. By highlighting best practices and key takeaways, I hope to inspire future engagement that is thoughtful, inclusive, and responsive to local needs. Through sound scavenging, interactive maps, and photo collages, I've created a layered archive of engagement that is felt and seen. Ultimately, this project highlights the value of public and applied humanities approaches by centering participation and creative documentation in fostering community and well-being
DEVELOPMENT OF A BIOCOMPATIBLE AND BIODEGRADABLE CHITOSAN-GELATIN SCAFFOLD CROSSLINKED TO ENHANCE WOUND HEALING AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY
No full textTraditional bandages and gauze are widely used in medical applications but suffer from significant limitations, including poor biocompatibility and the absence of properties that would aid in wound healing. This study proposes the development of a chitosan-gelatin scaffold crosslinked with genipin to address these shortcomings. The resulting scaffold is designed to be biodegradable and biocompatible while offering antibacterial, hemostatic, anti-inflammatory, and
antifungal properties, all of which are critical for enhancing wound healing and promoting tissue regeneration. Although no experimental data have been collected, this proposal is based on an extensive review of studies involving chitosan, gelatin, crosslinking agents, and related scaffolds, culminating in a detailed procedural framework for future research and development
SPEECH, SPENDING, AND THE STATE: REFORMING CAMPAIGN FINANCE IN AMERICAN DEMOCRACY
No full textThe influence of money in American politics, particularly through campaign contributions, has steadily increased over the past decade, even as official contribution limits have remained largely unchanged. For decades, the Supreme Court has wrestled with campaign finance cases, continually seeking to balance First Amendment protections with the government's interest in preventing corruption. Today, limits are placed on direct contributions to candidates from individuals, political parties, and political action committees (PACs). However, super PACs stand apart from these rules by being permitted to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money, so long as they do not coordinate directly with candidates or campaigns. While lawmakers and justices have accepted this distinction as a legal foundation for campaign finance, the regulations governing super PACs have created a significant legal exception that allows an effectively unlimited flow of money to influence elections. This situation raises serious concerns about the integrity of democratic processes and the disproportionate influence of wealthy donors. Although political donations are an important form of free expression, a better framework must be developed to protect both democratic integrity and constitutional rights. A revised approach would continue to allow citizens to express political preferences through financial support, but would impose meaningful limits on super PAC contributions. Such reform would strike a more appropriate balance between free speech and the need to limit corruption, ensuring that political power is not concentrated in the hands of a few wealthy interests
Temporal, Spatial, and Phylogenetic Factors that Structure Foliar Fungal Endophyte Communities Across Scales
No full textSymbioses shape the tree of life and the biotic communities that define all ecosystems. Broadly considered universal components of eukaryotic life, symbioses can result in the mutual modulation of host and symbiont phenotypes, thus shaping the evolutionary trajectory of partner organisms. As the major primary producers in terrestrial ecosystems, plants engage in symbioses with diverse microorganisms such as endophytes, the microbes including fungi that live within healthy plant tissues. Endophytes that live in photosynthetic organs such as leaves can associate with plant physiology, health, and responses to stress, and thus are thought to be intrinsic to plants’ establishment, persistence under stress, and evolution. Characterizing distributions of endophytes and the factors that structure their communities represents an important step in understanding a fundamental aspect of land plants. In this dissertation, I examine variation of endophyte communities at multiple levels of biological organization. Previous work suggests that endophyte communities often vary as a function of the interaction between host-related and environmental factors, but rarely do such studies examine the relative importance of intraspecific variation in hosts in the context of environmental factors, the evolutionary context of symbioses in major plant lineages that occur at a global scale, or the intersection of temporal and spatial factors that may inform endophyte associations in rapidly changing environments. My work complements and extends previous studies by applying consistent methods and sampling approaches to characterize endophyte communities among individuals of one species (Torreya taxifolia) at a local scale, among species in a major clade of plants (Gymnosperms) at a global scale, and over time and space in Earth’s most rapidly changing terrestrial ecosystem, the Arctic.First, in a study of North America’s most endangered conifer, T. taxifolia, my work reveals the that endophyte communities at a local scale – a single conservation nursery of < 0.2 ha – differ as a function of microenvironment, without detectable variation among T. taxifolia individuals of different genotypes. My findings improve our understanding of community assembly in rare and regionally naïve hosts, with potential implications for conservation practice due to the association of distinct endophyte communities with host stress. Next, I explored variation in endophyte communities among members of a major clade of seed plants, the gymnosperms, linking host phylogeny and environmental factors in an evaluation of patterns of phylosymbiosis (i.e., symbiotic recapitulation of host phylogeny). My work reveals that endophytes differ geographically, and do not track the phylogeny of their hosts at a global scale. However, evidence for phylosymbiosis was detected within biomes, consistent with potential selectivity or host filtering as a function of environmental factors. Aspects of my inference were limited because, by necessity, sampling endophytes from fresh tissue represents a temporal snapshot of associations and may reflect past environmental pressures. I thus asked if plant herbarium specimens can be used to characterize historical endophyte diversity, and explored the degree to which dried plant samples from 1886 to present may provide insight into endophyte communities of the past. I center this work in the rapidly changing Arctic, a biome in urgent need of biodiversity characterization, and contextualize the past with the present by evaluating endophyte communities in extant Arctic plants. I emphasize the utility and challenges associated with characterizing endophyte communities in herbarium specimens, and highlight modern-day distributions and environmental associations of endophytes across diverse plant communities in the low- to high Arctic. Taken together, these studies show that communities of endophytes are dynamic components of micro- and macro-ecosystems, that much endophyte diversity remains undescribed, and that the continuum of narrow host breadth and broad host use define endophyte communities across the world’s biomes. Thus, my work scales from nurseries to continents to advance our understanding of endophytes as essential symbionts of plants, and employs novel methods and frameworks to contextualize endophyte community variability over time, geography, and host evolutionary history
Discovery and Description of a Subgenital Bacterial Organ within Female Ant Nest Beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Paussini)
No full textIn this study, I investigated the female reproductive system in paussine beetles and identified a specialized structure—the subgenital bacterial organ. This is a membranous invagination between abdominal segments VII and VIII, lined with cuticular spikes, and densely populated with bacteria. While previously thought to be part of the primary gonopore, I now recognize this structure as something anatomically separate from the reproductive system. I conclude that it has uniquely evolved to house and sustain bacteria. Where this organ is present, I also see that it is flanked by two conspicuous lateral glands. I hypothesize that these glands produce substances that support a species-specific bacterial community. This organ is not present in all species of the subfamily Paussinae. To understand both the geographic and phylogenetic distribution of this organ we compared female reproductive anatomy across multiple taxa. I found this organ to be unique to and consistently present throughout the tribe Paussini, with a few exceptions. I selected Paussus favieri as our test subject for further investigation of the bacteria within this organ. I used metagenomic sequencing, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and both traditional and Fluorescent in-Situ Hybridization (FISH) histology to confirm the presence of and visualize bacteria within the subgenital bacterial organ and other reproductive tissues. I corroborated our findings through tests on other species in the genus Paussus. Through this work, I have expanded our understanding of the female reproductive system in Paussinae, and described the previously misattributed subgenital bacterial organ. I have also documented a previously undescribed postabdominal membrane and contextualized its function within the beetle’s postabdominal reproductive system
Corrosion Behavior of Additively Manufactured Alloy 625, A Nickel Based Superalloy
No full textDespite growing interest in additive manufacturing, there remains a significant gap in research concerning corrosion behavior of wire-based methods. Most of the existing studies have predominantly focused on powder-based methods, leaving wire-based techniques relatively underexplored. This disparity in research attention highlights the need for additional corrosion research involving wire-based methods to fully understand their potential benefits and applications.In this study, the corrosion behavior of alloy 625 produced by laser-wire directed energy deposition (LW-DED) and wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) was investigated using electrochemical techniques and compared to the wrought alloy. The differences were examined between surface conditions (polished or unpolished), heat treatment conditions, and manufacturing methods. Samples were subjected to open circuit potential, Tafel analysis, potentiodynamic, and potentiostatic testing (+1V vs. OCP) in a 3.7% hydrochloric acid electrolyte, employing a silver/silver chloride reference and platinum counter electrode. Post-test characterization included optical and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy.
Additive manufacturing processes such as laser wire and wire arc directed energy deposition, build material layer by layer with localized melting and solidification of a wire feedstock. The specific microstructure is affected by many factors such as the alloy composition, temperature gradient, cooling rate, and subsequent heat-treatment. In nickel-based superalloys the as-built microstructure from additively manufacturing is generally defined by constitutional supercooling, which results in a dendritic structure oriented in the build direction. The underlying microstructure influences the characteristics of the material. For a component built using additive manufacturing to be put into service, understanding the performance in the desired application is extremely important. Some such performance standards might include tensile strength, fatigue behavior and corrosion resistance. Corrosion is of particular interest for applications such as nuclear power or aerospace, where the harsh operating environment degrades material performance. This study examines the microstructure, electrochemical behavior, and post-corrosion characterization of additively manufactured (LW-DED and WAAM) nickel-based superalloy 625. Wrought alloy 625 is also tested in the same electrochemical test sequence in order to make comparisons with the printed samples. The following has been shown:
• LW-DED and WAAM both produce dendritic microstructures as a result of constitutional supercooling. • WAAM produces coarser microstructure, which includes columnar and equiaxed dendrites depending on the location relative to the weld centerline, as well as titanium-rich precipitates. • LW-DED produces a finer microstructure, including columnar dendrites along the build direction.
• In corrosive conditions, the interdendritic regions, consisting of mostly niobium and molybdenum, are susceptible to accelerated attack for both LW-DED and WAAM material. • LW-DED has a higher corrosion potential and lower corrosion current/rate than WAAM. • Both LW-DED and WAAM have lower corrosion potentials than wrought alloy 625. • WAAM has a higher corrosion rate compared to the wrought alloy. • LW-DED has a similar, but slightly lower corrosion rate than wrought. • Heat treatment increases the corrosion potential and decreases the corrosion current/rate for both LW-DED and WAAM. • LW-DED produces coarse carbides during heat-treatment, which become sites for pitting at high applied potentials resulting in a higher current response/reaction rate in potentiostatic testing.
• Smoother/polished surfaces lead to higher corrosion potentials and lower corrosion currents/rates
Rural heat health disparities: Evidence from the U.S. National Emergency Medical Services Information System (NEMSIS)
No full textBackground: Increasing average temperatures and extreme heat events due to climate change have adverse effects on human health. Previous studies focus on the heat impacts in urban areas due to the focus on the greater population and urban heat island effect, but this tendency results in the effect of heat on rural health being overlooked. Methods: Using the National Emergency Medical Services Information System (NEMSIS) data from 2021 to 2023, this study compares heat-related illness (HRI) in urban and rural areas of the U.S. Results: We found the odds of EMS events in an urban area resulting with a positive outcome for the patient was 1.24 times that of EMS events in rural areas. This urban-rural disparity was not equal across regions with the odds of EMS events to rural areas of the Western U.S. resulting with a positive outcome for the patient was 54 % less than that for urban areas. Conclusion: This critical evidence of a rural-urban heat health disparity calls attention to the impact of climate change-fueled heat impacts on health in communities of all sizes, and a need for more rural heat resilience research to inform practice.NOAA Climate Program OfficeThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]