Grassroots Engagement: Securing Support for Science Communication Training Programs Created by Graduate Students for Graduate Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rohde, J. A.

2016-12-01

The need for science communication and outreach is widely recognized throughout the scientific community. Yet, at present, graduate students and early career scientists have, at best, widely variable access to opportunities to train in science communication techniques and to hone their outreach skills. In 2010, a small group of graduate students at the University of Washington led a grassroots effort to increase their own access to communication and outreach training by creating "The Engage Program." They developed a novel, interdisciplinary curriculum focused on storytelling, public speaking and improvisation, design, and the distillation of complex topics to clear and accessible forms. These entrepreneurial students faced (real or perceived) barriers to building this program, including the pressure to hide or dampen their enthusiasm from advisors and mentors, ignorance of university structures, and lack of institutional support. They overcame these barriers and secured institutional champions and funding, partnered with Town Hall Seattle to create a science speaker series, and developed a student leadership structure to ensure long-term sustainability of the program. Additionally, they crowdfunded an evaluation of the program's effectiveness in order demonstrate the benefits of such training to the scientific careers of the students. Here we present our key strategies for overcoming barriers to support, and compare them with several similar grassroots graduate-student led public communication programs from other institutions.

Empowering Women at the Grassroots: A Manual for Women's Human Rights Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guhathakurta, Meghna; Lina, Khadija

Nagorik Uddyog (Citizen's Initiative) is a non-profit, non-governmental Bangladeshi organization focused on empowering women at the grassroots level through human rights education. Although women constitute half of the total population of Bangladesh, their participation in social, cultural, and political activities is limited. Recently,…

Putting a Face on the Issue: Corporate Stakeholder Mobilization in Professional Grassroots Lobbying Campaigns

PubMed Central

Walker, Edward T.

2014-01-01

Business scholars pay increasing attention to the expanded influence of stakeholders on firm strategies, legitimacy, and competitiveness. At the same time, analysts have noted that the transformed regulatory and legislative environments of recent decades have encouraged firms to become much more politically active. Surprisingly, relatively little research has tied together these two trends. The present study integrates perspectives on stakeholder management with research on corporate political activity to develop an understanding of the structural sources of stakeholder mobilization in professional grassroots lobbying campaigns. This study employs a unique, original data source to consider how the adoption of grassroots lobbying by a firm relates to its industry, degree of inside lobbying, partisan PAC contributions, and more. This research shows that corporate grassroots lobbying is shaped most significantly by a firm’s degree of inside lobbying, as highly active firms take a diversified strategy for gaining influence. Firms in industries with a heavy public presence as well as those concerned with taxation, government appropriations, and economic development also adopt these strategies readily. PAC contributions to Republican, but not Democratic, candidates also heighten firms’ propensity to lobby the public. PMID:24707060

Substance abuse prevention in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

PubMed

Whitbeck, Les B; Walls, Melissa L; Welch, Melissa L

2012-09-01

In this article we review three categories of American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN) substance abuse prevention programs: (1) published empirical trials; (2) promising programs published and unpublished that are in the process of development and that have the potential for empirical trials; and (3) examples of innovative grassroots programs that originate at the local level and may have promise for further development. AIAN communities are taking more and more independent control of substance abuse prevention. We point out that European American prevention scientists are largely unaware of the numerous grassroots prevention work going on in AIAN communities and urge a paradigm shift from adapting European American prevention science "best practices" to creating cultural "best practices" by working from inside AIAN communities.

Cost Validation Using PRICE H

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jack, John; Kwan, Eric; Wood, Milana

2011-01-01

PRICE H was introduced into the JPL cost estimation tool set circa 2003. It became more available at JPL when IPAO funded the NASA-wide site license for all NASA centers. PRICE H was mainly used as one of the cost tools to validate proposal grassroots cost estimates. Program offices at JPL view PRICE H as an additional crosscheck to Team X (JPL Concurrent Engineering Design Center) estimates. PRICE H became widely accepted ca, 2007 at JPL when the program offices moved away from grassroots cost estimation for Step 1 proposals. PRICE H is now one of the key cost tools used for cost validation, cost trades, and independent cost estimates.

Parent Power and Public Education Reform: The Experience of Participation in Grassroots Organizing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mediratta, Kavitha

2013-01-01

This dissertation examines the effects of participation in grassroots organizing on the capacity and commitment of public school parents and community members to engage in future activism. The study used a mixed-methods research design, drawing on qualitative and quantitative data collected from individuals involved in seven exemplar…

Grassroots Engagement and the University of Washington: Evaluating Science Communication Training Created by Graduate Students for Graduate Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rohde, J. A.; Clarkson, M.; Houghton, J.; Chen, W.

2016-12-01

Science graduate students increasingly seek science communication training, yet many do not have easy access to training programs. Students often rely on a "do it yourself" approach to gaining communication skills, and student created science communication programs are increasingly found at universities and institutions across the U.S. In 2010, graduate students at the University of Washington led a grassroots effort to improve their own communication and outreach by creating "The Engage Program." With a focus on storytelling and public speaking, this graduate level course not only trains students in science communication but also gives them real world experience practicing that training at a public speaker series at Town Hall Seattle. The Engage Program was fortunate in that it was able to find institutional champions at University of Washington and secure funding to sustain the program over the long-term. However, many grassroots communication programs find it difficult to gain institutional support if there is a perceived lack of alignment with university priorities or lack of return on investment. In order to justify and incentivize institutional support for instruction in science communication, student leaders within the program initiated, designed and carried out an evaluation of their own program focused on assessing the impact of student communication, evaluating the effectiveness of the program in teaching communication skills, and quantifying the benefits of communication training to both the students and their institution. Project leaders created the opportunity for this evaluation by initiating a crowdfunding campaign, which has helped to further engage public support of science communication and incentivized student participation in the program, and may also inspire future program leaders to pursue similar program optimizations.

Collective Action by Women in Community-Based Program Planning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scott, Sue M.; Schmitt-Boshnick, Margo

1996-01-01

The Candora women's collective uses a participatory model in developing community-based programming for women. Such grassroots organizations are faced with ethical dilemmas in negotiating the interests of funding agencies, organizations, and the women served. (SK)

A Faculty Development Program for Nurse Educators Learning to Teach Online

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Debra; Paulus, Trena M.; Loboda, Iryna; Phipps, Gina; Wyatt, Tami H.; Myers, Carole R.; Mixer, Sandra J.

2010-01-01

As the College of Nursing at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville prepared to move their graduate programs online, a nursing faculty grass-roots movement led to the implementation of a faculty development program. This instructional design portfolio describes the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of this program, with the goal…

InsightSTEM Campus Ambassadors: Worldwide Grassroots Student Networking, Development, and Outreach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nuccitelli, D. A.

2016-12-01

We present results on our Campus Ambassadors program, which in three years has grown, through grassroots networking, to comprise over 550 members in over 30 countries worldwide. We will share our experiences of peer-to-peer network growth on an international scale, as well as issues with growth and program impacts in the USA, South America, Africa, Asia and Europe. InsightSTEM seeks to democratize STEM knowledge through exploration, and our Campus Ambassadors are supported in their desire to share their own STEM knowledge with their broader communities. They have impacts by supporting individuals becoming critically thinking, STEM literate, global learners. Since its inception in 2014, the program has relied on its members to continue to expand the program. The most notable impacts globally have been with students in India, and in West Africa (most notably Liberia). We will discuss the challenges and outcomes of providing a global program for these vastly diverse communities, and strategies we are testing to ensure an equitable experience for all participants.

InsightSTEM Campus Ambassadors: Worldwide Grassroots Student Networking, Development, and Outreach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noel-Storr, J.

2017-12-01

We present results on our Campus Ambassadors program, which in three years has grown, through grassroots networking, to comprise over 550 members in over 30 countries worldwide. We will share our experiences of peer-to-peer network growth on an international scale, as well as issues with growth and program impacts in the USA, South America, Africa, Asia and Europe. InsightSTEM seeks to democratize STEM knowledge through exploration, and our Campus Ambassadors are supported in their desire to share their own STEM knowledge with their broader communities. They have impacts by supporting individuals becoming critically thinking, STEM literate, global learners. Since its inception in 2014, the program has relied on its members to continue to expand the program. The most notable impacts globally have been with students in India, and in West Africa (most notably Liberia). We will discuss the challenges and outcomes of providing a global program for these vastly diverse communities, and strategies we are testing to ensure an equitable experience for all participants.

Implementing ethics in the professions: examples from environmental epidemiology.

PubMed

Soskolne, Colin L; Sieswerda, Lee E

2003-04-01

The need to integrate ethics into professional life, from the grassroots up, has been recognized, and a comprehensive ethics program has been proposed as a model. The model includes the four dimensions of: consensus building, ethics guidelines development and review, education, and implementation. The activities of the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology (ISEE) are presented as examples and compared with the proposed model. Several innovative activities are described and incentives for ethical professional conduct are highlighted. The examples are provided for emulation by other professional organizations in the hope that, thereby, greater protection of the public interest will be achieved.

Exploring the Application of Volunteered Geographic Information to Catchment Management: a Survey Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paudyal, D. R.; McDougall, K.; Apan, A.

2012-07-01

The participation and engagement of grass-root level community groups and citizens for natural resource management has a long history. With recent developments in ICT tools and spatial technology, these groups are seeking a new opportunity to manage natural resource data. There are lot of spatial information collected/generated by landcare groups, land holders and other community groups at the grass-root level through their volunteer initiatives. State government organisations are also interested in gaining access to this spatial data/information and engaging these groups to collect spatial information under their mapping programs. The aim of this paper is to explore the possible utilisation of volunteered geographic information (VGI) for catchment management activities. This research paper discusses the importance of spatial information and spatial data infrastructure (SDI) for catchment management and the emergence of VGI. A conceptual framework has been developed to illustrate how these emerging spatial information applications and various community volunteer activities can contribute to a more inclusive spatial data infrastructure (SDI) development at local level. A survey of 56 regional NRM bodies in Australia was utilised to explore the current community-driven volunteer initiatives for NRM activities and the potential of utilisation of VGI initiatives for NRM decision making process. This research paper concludes that VGI activities have great potential to contribute to SDI development at the community level to achieve better natural resource management (NRM) outcomes.

A Grass-Roots Endeavor To Develop a Permanent University Program for Vision Professionals: The North Carolina Model.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, Brad R.; Bozeman, Laura A.

2002-01-01

This article describes a collaborative process that parents, teachers, consumers, and advocacy groups in North Carolina used to successfully establish a permanently funded university training program specializing in visual impairments, the Visual Impairment Training Program. Within this process several factors were identified that contributed to…

A Case Study in Citizen Science: The Effectiveness of a Trap-Neuter-Return Program in a Chicago Neighborhood.

PubMed

Spehar, Daniel D; Wolf, Peter J

2018-01-18

The use of trap-neuter-return (TNR) as a method of managing free-roaming cat populations has increased in the United States in recent decades. Historically, TNR has been conducted most often at a grassroots level, which has led to inconsistent data collection and assessment practices. Consequently, a paucity of analyzable data exists. An initiative is underway to standardize TNR program data collection and assessment. However, it could be some time before scientifically sound protocols are implemented on a broad scale. In the interim, sets of data collected by nascent citizen scientists offer valid opportunities to evaluate grassroots TNR programs. The purpose of the present study was to examine the effectiveness of a TNR program conducted by a citizen scientist located in Chicago, Illinois, where a county law permitting TNR was enacted in 2007. Colony populations, when grouped by the number of years enrolled in the program, declined by a mean of 54% from entry and 82% from peak levels. Results from coexistent TNR programs in the Chicago area are consistent with these findings.

Association of school performance indicators with implementation of the Healthy Kids, Smart Kids program: case study

PubMed Central

Nansel, Tonja R.; Huang, Terry T.K.; Rovner, Alisha J.; Sanders-Butler, Yvonne

2009-01-01

Objective: The purpose of this analysis was to examine secular trends in school performance indicators in relationship to the implementation of a program targeting the school food and physical activity environment. Design: Data on available school performance indicators were obtained; retrospective analyses were conducted to assess trends in indicators in association with program implementation; each outcome was regressed on year, beginning with the year prior to program implementation. Setting: The Healthy Kids, Smart Kids program was a grass-roots effort to enhance the school food and physical activity environment in the Browns Mill Elementary School in Georgia. Subjects: Data included publicly available school records from the years 1995 to 2006. Results: The number of nurse, counseling, and disciplinary referrals per 100 students demonstrated a downward trend, while standardized test scores demonstrated an upward trend beginning the year of program implementation. School year was a significant predictor of all indicators. Conclusions: Promoting nutrition and physical activity within the school environment may be a promising approach for enhancing both student health and educational outcomes. PMID:19454125

Global Studies: Hurdles to Program Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campbell, Patricia J.; Masters, Paul E.; Goolsby, Amy

2004-01-01

In this article, we examine a new global studies program that departs from the traditional state-centric approach and uses a geocentric, or earth-centered, approach that emphasizes the roles of individuals, grassroots organizations, cultural groups, and international organizations in an attempt to help students conceptualize global events and…

A grassroots movement in Glendora, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jagoda, S.

1980-01-01

DeLaine Morgan is a teacher at Sandburg Junior High School in Glendora, Calif. Because of her efforts, the Glendora Unified School District is establishing an earthquake preparedness program in each of the District's schools. The following interview relates how this program got started and what individuals can do to get earthquake preparedness programs started in their own communities.  

Roundball Geography: A Successful Grass Roots Geographic Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bailey, William H.; Dawsey, Cyrus B.

1992-01-01

Describes a grass-roots geographic education program that combines the efforts of elementary school teachers, Auburn University (Alabama), and a local newspaper. Explains that the program is designed as an alternative to existing curriculum materials. Discusses how geographic themes are illustrated in a way that takes advantage of local interest…

Cultural energy grassroots and development.

PubMed

Kleymeyer, C D

1992-01-01

The importance of culture in economic development is discussed based on 10 years of case reports in the publication, Grassroots Development. Cultural energy is considered important for the launching, sustainment, and expansion of programs; yet, only 10% of IAF Foundation grants over 20 years have focused on cultural energy as a tool for development. By the late 1960s development theorists blamed the lack of progress on "backward looking traditional cultures." In Latin America culture was seen as an obstacle to be overcome rather than an opportunity. The debt and environmental crisis of the 1980s has opened the doors to new methods. A recent study of the Aymara and Mapuche in Chile found that uprooting local culture meant loss of land, cultural roots, and social relationships, as well as loss of stewardship of the environment. The Kuna is Panama were seen as successful in combining traditional ways with Western ideas in formation of an ecological park; this was accomplished through self-confidence and self-will in grassroots development. However, the Kuna have also undergone changes and the ancestral view of nature and humanity's place in it is being undermined. The acculturation of the young may leave an emptiness that is neither Panamanian nor Kuna. The Chimborazo Indians in the highlands of Ecuador have only achieved moderate success in eliminating poverty in spite of international efforts which imposed development schemes onto the community. The Feria Educativa (Educational Fair) was formed among indigenous volunteers working with the Serviceo Ecuatoriano de Voluntarios-Chimborazo to promote culture and self-help. Members enter the community only when invited; the program uses puppets and sociodramas to portray common problems such as illiteracy and stimulate group participation. Their efforts have been successful in establishing literacy, reforestation, and economic activity programs. The Kuna shopped among Western ideas to chose ones appropriate to their culture and the Chimborazo look to their cultural past for ideas to use in the modern context. An example is given of cultural awareness and participatory evaluation among the Sikuani Indians in Colombia. How to tap cultural energy and the prospects for culture-based development are discussed as resourceful ways to promote development and community action.

From the Paralympics to public health: increasing physical activity through legislative and policy initiatives.

PubMed

Blauwet, Cheri A; Iezzoni, Lisa I

2014-08-01

Individuals with disabilities experience a disproportionate rate of chronic disease and are more likely to lead sedentary lifestyles than the general population. Multiple complex factors likely contribute to these disparities, including structural, socioeconomic and attitudinal barriers that impede broad participation of individuals with disabilities in health and wellness promotion programs. Public health initiatives aimed at mitigating these health disparities emphasize improved access to physical activity and sports opportunities. Given its visibility, the Paralympic Movement provides an opportunity to transform how society conceptualizes the relationship of disability to physical fitness. The Paralympics also serve as a catalyst for public health education and program development. Already, public policies and governmental regulations are expanding grassroots sports opportunities for youth and adults with disabilities, thus promoting inclusive opportunities for participation in physical activity. Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Grassroots medical peace building: training Palestinian physicians in Israel.

PubMed

Kertcher, Chen

2014-01-01

Based on new scholarship on the importance of health in times of conflict, this paper examines the training of Palestinian physicians in Israel from the 1990s to 2010 as a test case for the theory. It shows that although Israeli governments have adopted a passive policy towards such training, and the Palestinian Authority is officially against such cooperation; in practice, individuals and hospitals on both sides work at the grassroots level with the aid of several NGOs to increase cooperation. Thus, grassroots activities are leading to better cooperation between Jewish and Palestinian health professionals, improving Palestinian health capabilities and establishing a bridgehead for better professional cooperation when a peace settlement is achieved. Health, like other social areas, is part of the explanation why the conflict remains stable and how mutual beneficial cooperation has planted the seeds for future cooperation.

Improving the Health of Cambodian Americans: Grassroots Approaches and Root Causes.

PubMed

Lee, Juliet P; Kirkpatrick, Sean; Rojas-Cheatham, Ann; Sin, Talaya; Moore, Roland S; Tan, Sotheavy; Godoy, Shadia; Ercia, Angelo

2016-01-01

Cambodian Americans experience great disparities in health compared to other Americans, yet may be underserved by conventional healthcare systems. Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is a means to engage underserved communities in health research and programming. We describe results of our efforts to engage the Cambodian grassroots members as well as formal leaders in Oakland, California. In addition to a community advisory group, we convened a Community Work Group (CWG), composed of 10 grassroots community women of varying ages and backgrounds. The project aimed to leverage the lived experiences of these women and their understandings of health and wellness in identifying specific health issues and developing culturally resonant strategies. The CWG met weekly with staff facilitators using methods for collective analysis including theater, body mapping, and other expressive arts. The approach proved logistically challenging, but resulted in novel analyses and strategies. The group identified trauma, along with poor access to education, unemployment and underemployment, social isolation, and generation gap, together with community violence, as root causes of key behavioral health issues, namely, alcohol abuse, gambling, prescription drug misuse, and domestic violence. Strategies proposed and implemented by the group and project staff were a community garden, Cambodian New Year's celebrations, and a museum exhibit on the Cambodian refugee experiences. Grassroots community engagement can support projects in identifying social determinants of health and developing the capacities of community members to conduct research and actions to improve health.

Provoking Innovation: Creating Grassroots and Intersectional Programming at Historical Organizations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blankenship, Jody

2009-01-01

Historical organizations cannot continue to compete in the modern marketplace using traditional models for education program development. Social networking sites and new applications are shaping the way our audiences approach their work, even more so as Generation Y/Millennials begin to flood into the workforce, changing the demographic makeup,…

China's Population Program at the Grassroots Level: Report on a Field Trip, Summer 1972.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Pi-chao

The goals of the Caltech Population Program are to increase understanding of the interrelationships between population growth and socioeconomic and cultural patterns throughout the world and to communicate this understanding. This series of occasional papers is one step in the process of communicating research results. The papers deal primarily…

Stone Soup Partnership: A Grassroots Model of Community Service.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kittredge, Robert E.

1997-01-01

Stone Soup Partnership is a collaboration between California State University at Fresno and its surrounding community to address serious problems in a high-crime, impoverished apartment complex near the university. The program involves students in service learning for university credit, and has expanded from a single summer youth program to a…

Human rights from the grassroots up: Vermont's campaign for universal health care.

PubMed

McGill, Mariah

2012-06-15

In 2008, the Vermont Workers' Center launched the "Healthcare Is a Human Right Campaign," a grassroots campaign to secure the creation of a universal health care system in Vermont. Campaign organizers used a human rights framework to mobilize thousands of voters in support of universal health care. In response to this extraordinary grassroots effort, the state legislature passed health care legislation that incorporates human rights principles into Vermont law and provides a framework for universal health care. The United States has often lagged behind other nations in recognizing economic, social, and cultural (ESC) rights, including the right to health. Nonetheless, activists have begun to incorporate ESC rights into domestic advocacy campaigns, and state and local governments are beginning to respond where the federal government has not. Vermont serves as a powerful example of how a human rights framework can inform health care policy and inspire grassroots campaigns in the United States. This three-part article documents the Vermont Workers' Center campaign and discusses the impact that human rights activity at the grassroots level may have on attitudes towards ESC rights in the United States. The first part describes the Vermont health care crisis and explains why the center adopted international human rights principles for their campaign. The article then goes on to discuss the three-year campaign and analyze the health care reform bill that the Vermont legislature passed. Finally, the article discusses the campaign's local and national impact. Copyright © 2012 McGill.

California's Proposition 186: lessons from a single-payer health care reform ballot initiative campaign.

PubMed

Farey, K; Lingappa, V R

1996-01-01

Proposition 186 was an initiative on the November 1994 California ballot which proposed to establish a state single-payer health care program. Although Prop 186 was overwhelmingly defeated in the November 1994 election (73% No, 27% Yes), it accomplished many things. Model legislation was developed showing the feasibility of a specific single-payer program for California. It was placed on the ballot by an unprecedented volunteer signature-gathering effort and was the largest grassroots political campaign fund-raising effort in California history. A novel strategy for the discussion of complex issues through 1500 house parties was launched. Prop 186 was defeated by an insurance industry-led coalition with an anti-government message. Lessons for future efforts include increasing the size and duration of the grassroots organizing and educational effort, and decreasing reliance on conventional political campaign tactics and the mainstream media.

Introduction of a guide to enhance risk communication among low-income and minority populations: a grassroots community engagement approach.

PubMed

Rowel, Randy; Sheikhattari, Payam; Barber, Tanyka M; Evans-Holland, Myrtle

2012-01-01

Low-income populations, especially those belonging to minority groups, are among the most vulnerable groups before, during, and after a natural disaster. One of the factors that can be attributed to their vulnerability is the ineffectiveness of traditional risk communication systems in reaching this population. Many low-income populations are distrustful of government agencies and those who typically communicate risk messages. Consequently, traditional systems are not as effective in reaching these communities. Furthermore, traditional systems have been based on the social media that the general population uses and not based on social networks of disadvantaged populations which are more important than formal channels in these communities for dissemination of information. To bridge the gap, an approach is needed that relies on trusted agencies and leaders to educate and warn low-income communities about possible public health threats. A grassroots approach can enhance the capacity of the risk communication systems to more effectively reach vulnerable populations by engaging grassroots organizations in risk communication activities. The Guide to Enhance Grassroots Risk Communication Among Low-Income Populations provides strategies and guidance that can assist agencies in upgrading their systems for risk communication by building partnerships with local community stakeholders.

The Legacy Project: A Case Study of Civic Capacity Building and Transformative Educational Leadership in a Community-Based Academic Enrichment Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Didlick-Davis, Celeste R.

2016-01-01

This study examines how a grassroots educational enrichment program in a small urban economically depressed area builds and uses civic capacity. Using qualitative data collected through a case study of the Legacy Academic Enrichment program in Middletown, Ohio, I identify factors that make Legacy sustainable and successful in a community that has…

What We Talk About When We Talk About Art Therapy: An Outsider's Guide to Identity Crisis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lentz, Rob

2008-01-01

The author discusses Randy Vick's analysis of studio-based programs in the United States and Europe for artists with disabilities. The disability studio, advocates the writer, is generally a grassroots, ad-hoc creation, staffed by self-taught practitioners who operate seemingly unaware that the operation of studio programs for artists with…

Improving the Health of Cambodian Americans: Grassroots Approaches and Root Causes

PubMed Central

Lee, Juliet P.; Kirkpatrick, Sean; Rojas-Cheatham, Ann; Sin, Talaya; Moore, Roland S.; Tan, Sotheavy; Godoy, Shadia; Ercia, Angelo

2015-01-01

Background Cambodian Americans experience great disparities in health compared to other Americans, yet may be underserved by conventional healthcare systems. CBPR is a means to engage underserved communities in health research and programming. We describe results of our efforts to engage the Cambodian grassroots members as well as formal leaders in Oakland, CA. Objectives In addition to a community advisory group, we convened a Community Work Group (CWG), composed of ten grassroots community women of varying ages and backgrounds. The project aimed to leverage the lived experiences of these women and their understandings of health and wellness in identifying specific health issues and developing culturally resonant strategies. Methods The CWG met weekly with staff facilitators using methods for collective analysis including theater, body mapping, and other expressive arts. Results The approach proved logistically challenging, but resulted in novel analyses and strategies. The group identified trauma, along with poor access to education, un- and under-employment, social isolation, and generation gap, together with community violence, as root causes of key behavioral health issues, i.e. alcohol abuse, gambling, prescription drug misuse, and domestic violence. Strategies proposed and implemented by the group and project staff were a community garden, Cambodian New Year’s celebrations, and a museum exhibit on the Cambodian refugee experiences. Conclusions Grassroots community engagement can support projects in identifying social determinants of health and developing the capacities of community members to conduct research and actions to improve health. PMID:27018360

Targeted Technology Transfer to US Independents

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Donald F. Duttlinger; E. Lance Cole

2006-09-29

The Petroleum Technology Transfer Council (PTTC) was established by domestic crude oil and natural gas producers in 1994 as a national not-for-profit organization to address the increasingly urgent need to improve the technology-transfer process in the U.S. upstream petroleum industry. Coordinated from a Headquarters (HQ) office in Houston, PTTC maintains an active grassroots program executed by 10 Regional Lead Organizations (RLOs) and two satellite offices (Figure 1). Regional Directors interact with domestic oil and gas producers through technology workshops, resource centers, websites, newsletters, technical publications and cooperative outreach efforts. HQ facilitates inter-regional technology transfer and implements a comprehensive communications program.more » Active volunteers on the National Board and in Producer Advisory Groups (PAGs) in each of the 10 regions focus effort in areas that will create the most impact for domestic producers. Focused effort by dedicated individuals across the country has enabled PTTC to achieve the milestones outlined in Appendix A.« less

Community-based HIV education and prevention workers respond to a changing environment.

PubMed

Guenter, Dale; Majumdar, Basanti; Willms, Dennis; Travers, Robb; Browne, Gina; Robinson, Greg

2005-01-01

The purpose of this study was to understand the culture, values, skills and activities of staff involved in education and prevention activities in community-based AIDS Service Organizations (ASOs) in Ontario, Canada, and to understand the role of evaluation research in their prevention programming. In this qualitative study, 33 staff members from 11 ASOs participated in semi-structured interviews that were analyzed using the grounded theory approach. ASO staff experience tension between a historical grassroots organizational culture characterized by responsiveness and relevance and a more recent culture of professionalization. Target populations have changed from being primarily gay men to an almost unlimited variety of communities. Program emphasis has shifted from education and knowledge dissemination to a broadly based mandate of health promotion, community development, and harm reduction. Integration of evidence of effectiveness, social-behavioral theory, or systematic evaluation is uncommon. Understanding these points of tension is important for the nursing profession when it is engaged with ASOs in programming or evaluation research.

Leadership Advisory Boards in Texas: Their Perceived Ability and Utilization as the Visioning Body for Program Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ripley, Jeff P.; Cummings, Scott R.; Lockett, Landry L.

2012-01-01

The ability of Leadership Advisory Boards within Texas AgriLife Extension Service to function as the primary visioning/needs assessment source is paramount to maintaining the grassroots connection for programs. The study reported here sought to measure the self-perceptions of members' ability to meet the demand associated with this role. The study…

Behold the Power of the Donut: A Successful Case Study of a DE Library, Departmental, and Faculty & Student Collaborations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCallister, Kelly C.; Peuler, Mollie

2016-01-01

Creating and maintaining a successful library distance education program, even given ideal variables, can be a huge challenge. This article will discuss how the library distance program was planned, implemented, and evaluated in a three-year span. A staff of three-five librarians utilized organizational partnerships, grassroots marketing and…

Addressing Social Issues.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schoebel, Susan

1991-01-01

Maintains that advertising can help people become more aware of social responsibilities. Describes a successful nationwide newspaper advertising competition for college students in which ads address social issues such as literacy, drugs, teen suicide, and teen pregnancy. Notes how the ads have helped grassroots programs throughout the United…

Grass-root Mobilisation and Citizen Participation: Issues and Challenges.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vasoo, S.

1991-01-01

Mobilization of citizen participation in grassroots organizations can be adversely affected when grassroots leaders perceive a lack of support. Periodic organizational diagnosis can lead to more equitable division of responsibilities and recruitment of more leaders and skilled participants. (SK)

Women's Empowerment: The Role of Credit and Small Enterprise Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mason, Gwen

1995-01-01

The Grassroots Gender Empowerment Movement in Sierra Leone is a gender-focused program of small enterprise development and revolving loans that has brought a degree of economic independence, community development, gender awareness, improved living conditions, and empowerment to the women involved. (JOW)

Grassroots Participation, Peer Education, and HIV Prevention by Sex Workers in South Africa

PubMed Central

Campbell, Catherine; Mzaidume, Zodwa

2001-01-01

Objectives. This microqualitative case study of a community-based peer education program led by sex workers at a South African mine examined the role of grassroots participation in sexual health promotion. Methods. The study involved in-depth interviews with 30 members of the target community. The interviews were analyzed in terms of social capital, empowerment, and identity. Results. The study yielded a detailed analysis of the way in which community dynamics have shaped the peer education program's development in a deprived, violent community where existing norms and networks are inconsistent with ideal criteria for participatory health promotion. Conclusions. Much remains to be learned about the complexities of translating theoretically and politically vital notions of “community participation” into practice among hard-to-reach groups. The fabric of local community life is shaped by nonlocal structural conditions of poverty and sexual inequality in ways that challenge those seeking to theorize the role of social capital in community development in general and in sexual health promotion in particular. PMID:11726380

Communities of Color Creating Healthy Environments to Combat Childhood Obesity

PubMed Central

Subica, Andrew M.; Douglas, Jason A.; Villanueva, Sandra

2016-01-01

Ethnic and racial health disparities present an enduring challenge to community-based health promotion, which rarely targets their underlying population-level determinants (e.g., poverty, food insecurity, health care inequity). We present a novel 3-lens prescription for using community organizing to treat these determinants in communities of color based on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Communities Creating Healthy Environments initiative, the first national project to combat childhood obesity in communities of color using community organizing strategies. The lenses—Social Justice, Culture–Place, and Organizational Capacity–Organizing Approach—assist health professional–community partnerships in planning and evaluating community organizing–based health promotion programs. These programs activate community stakeholders to alter their community’s disease-causing, population-level determinants through grassroots policy advocacy, potentially reducing health disparities affecting communities of color. PMID:26562108

Sex work and the claim for grassroots legislation.

PubMed

Fassi, Marisa N

2015-01-01

The aim of this paper is to contribute to understanding of legal models that aim to control sex work, and the policy implications of these, by discussing the experience of developing a grassroots legislation bill proposal by organised sex workers in Córdoba, Argentina. The term 'grassroots legislation' here refers to a legal response that derives from the active involvement of local social movements and thus incorporates the experiential knowledge and claims of these particular social groupings in the proposal. The experience described in this paper excludes approaches that render sex workers as passive victims or as deviant perpetrators; instead, it conceives of sex workers in terms of their political subjectivity and of political subjectivity in its capacity to speak, to decide, to act and to propose. This means challenging current patterns of knowledge/power that give superiority to 'expert knowledge' above and beyond the claims, experiences, knowledge and needs of sex workers themselves as meaningful sources for law making.

Local Environmental Grassroots Activism: Contributions from Environmental Psychology, Sociology and Politics

PubMed Central

Mihaylov, Nikolay L.; Perkins, Douglas D.

2015-01-01

Local environmental grassroots activism is robust and globally ubiquitous despite the ebbs and flows of the general environmental movement. In this review we synthesize social movement, environmental politics, and environmental psychology literatures to answer the following questions: How does the environment emerge as a topic for community action and how a particular environmental discourse (preservation, conservation, public health, Deep Ecology, justice, localism and other responses to modernization and development) becomes dominant? How does a community coalesce around the environmental issue and its particular framing? What is the relationship between local and supralocal (regional, national, global) activism? We contrast “Not in My Back Yard” (NIMBY) activism and environmental liberation and discuss the significance of local knowledge and scale, nature as an issue for activism, place attachment and its disruption, and place-based power inequalities. Environmental psychology contributions to established scholarship on environmental activism are proposed: the components of place attachment are conceptualized in novel ways and a continuous dweller and activist place attachment is elaborated. PMID:25806672

Local environmental grassroots activism: contributions from environmental psychology, sociology and politics.

PubMed

Mihaylov, Nikolay L; Perkins, Douglas D

2015-03-23

Local environmental grassroots activism is robust and globally ubiquitous despite the ebbs and flows of the general environmental movement. In this review we synthesize social movement, environmental politics, and environmental psychology literatures to answer the following questions: How does the environment emerge as a topic for community action and how a particular environmental discourse (preservation, conservation, public health, Deep Ecology, justice, localism and other responses to modernization and development) becomes dominant? How does a community coalesce around the environmental issue and its particular framing? What is the relationship between local and supralocal (regional, national, global) activism? We contrast "Not in My Back Yard" (NIMBY) activism and environmental liberation and discuss the significance of local knowledge and scale, nature as an issue for activism, place attachment and its disruption, and place-based power inequalities. Environmental psychology contributions to established scholarship on environmental activism are proposed: the components of place attachment are conceptualized in novel ways and a continuous dweller and activist place attachment is elaborated.

Community engagement research and dual diagnosis anonymous.

PubMed

Roush, Sean; Monica, Corbett; Pavlovich, Danny; Drake, Robert E

2015-01-01

Community engagement research is widely discussed but rarely implemented. This article describes the implementation of a community engagement research project on Dual Diagnosis Anonymous, a rapidly spreading peer support program in Oregon for people with co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorders. After three years of discussions, overcoming barriers, and involving several institutions, this grassroots research project has been implemented and is expanding. Active participants in Dual Diagnosis Anonymous inspired and instructed policy makers, professionals, and students. Community engagement research requires frontline participants, community members, and professional collaborators to overcome multiple barriers with persistence and steadfastness. Building trust, collaboration, and structures for community engagement research takes time and a community effort.

Challenging Political Spectacle through Grassroots Policy Dialogues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Winton, Sue; Evans, Michael P.

2014-01-01

Can simply talking about policy strengthen democracy? Drawing on data collected for case studies of one Canadian and two U.S. grassroots organizations, we demonstrate that taking part in policy dialogues hosted by grassroots organizations enables participants to gain greater clarity regarding policy issues, policy processes, and citizens'…

Teamwork for High Schools and Colleges.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stanfield, Rochelle L.

1981-01-01

Secondary and postsecondary institutions have much to gain by recognizing their interdependence and sharing resources. Incentives to partnership have been few in the past. Although power often rests with state governments, grass-roots efforts and programs initiated by individual departments have often had enough commitment to be successful. (MSE)

Creating a biopower agenda through grassroots organizing

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hauter, W.

1995-11-01

Biomass electricity provides both opportunities for strengthening the rural economy and advancing environmental goals. However, while large scale biomass development can be done in a manner that both furthers economic development and helps prevent environmental degradation, its commercialization requires a complex coordination of activities between utilities and farmers. Inherent problems exist in creating parallel development of a resource base and technological advancements. In fact, an understanding of the anthropology of biopower is necessary in order to advance it on a large scale. The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) published a report on renewable electricity, released in March 1992, that hasmore » been used as a foundation for state-based work promoting renewables. In several Midwestern states, such as Nebraska, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, we have used classic grassroots organizing skills to educate the public and key constituencies about the benefits of biomass. Besides working directly with utilities to promote biomass development, we also have a legislative agenda that helps create a climate favorable to biopower. This paper will focus on the grassroots aspect of our campaigns. It will also include an overview of some anthropological work that the author has done in communities with farmers. The main tool for this has been focus groups. We have found that people can be organized around biomass issues and that a grassroots base furthers biomass development.« less

Learning from the Grassroots: Exploring Democratic Adult Learning Opportunities Connected to Grassroots Organizations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gouthro, Patricia A.

2012-01-01

Grassroots organizations emerge when groups of people decide to work collectively to form an organization as a way to initiate change. Rather than seeking leadership from established government or corporate organizations or departments, the purpose of the organization, the framework for decision making, and the individuals involved in leadership…

Formal versus Grass-Roots Training: Women, Work, and Computers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brunet, Jean; Proulx, Serge

1989-01-01

Examines programs in Montreal, Canada, that offer microcomputing training--traditional private courses as well as an experimental, neighborhood-oriented "popular laboratory." Finds that both are used by men to advance their careers but that women use them to catch up and survive economically in a transformed workplace. (SR)

Training of Personnel for Programmes in Early Childhood Care and Education in India.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muralidharan, Rajalakshmi

1992-01-01

Describes the early childhood components of India's National Policy on Education (1986), focusing particularly on the training of grassroots level personnel or Anganwadi workers, preschool teachers, creche workers, middle-level personnel, and project officers. Reviews training innovations, including mobile creches, home-based programs,…

Gender in Popular Education. Methods for Empowerment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walters, Shirley, Ed.; Manicom, Linzi, Ed.

This book is a collection of critical reflections on feminist adult education work in grassroots organizations, development projects, formal institutions, and community education programs in a wide variety of countries: South Africa, India, the United States, Canada, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Australia. The contributors come from a variety of…

Tensions and Dilemmas in Community Development: New Discourses, New Trojans?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kenny, Sue

2002-01-01

Contradictory expectations facing community development practitioners include innovation versus bureaucratic accountability and professionalization versus grassroots activism. Four operating frameworks affect practice: charity, welfare state, activism, and market. In some instances, these frameworks and their related discourses are being fused,…

Re-Framing, Re-Imagining, and Re-Tooling Curricula from the Grassroots: The Chicago Grassroots Curriculum Taskforce

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pulido, Isaura B.; Miglietta, Anton; Cortez, Gabriel Alejandro; Stovall, David; Aviles de Bradley, Ann

2013-01-01

This article explores the work of the Grassroots Curriculum Taskforce (CGCT), a Chicago-based collaborative that engages in collective production of curricula that more adeptly capture the cultural, economic, and political realities of Chicago Public Schools' students. We first examine the collaborative processes CGCT undertook with parents,…

Cultivating a Grassroots Aerospace Innovation Culture at NASA Ames Research Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

D'Souza, Sarah; Sanchez, Hugo; Lewis, Ryan

2017-01-01

This paper details the adaptation of specific 'knowledge production' methods to implement a first of its kind, grassroots event that provokes a cultural change in how the NASA Ames civil servant community engages in the creation and selection of innovative ideas. Historically, selection of innovative proposals at NASA Ames Research Center is done at the highest levels of management, isolating the views and perspectives of the larger civil servant community. Additionally, NASA innovation programs are typically open to technical organizations and do not engage non-technical organizations to bring forward innovative processes/business practices. Finally, collaboration on innovative ideas and associated solutions tend to be isolated to organizational silos. In this environment, not all Ames employees feel empowered to innovate and opportunities for employee collaboration are limited. In order to address these issues, the 'innovation contest' method was adapted to create the NASA Ames Innovation Fair, a unique, grassroots innovation opportunity for the civil servant community. The Innovation Fair consisted of a physical event with a virtual component. The physical event provided innovators the opportunity to collaborate and pitch their innovations to the NASA Ames community. The civil servant community then voted for the projects that they viewed as innovative and would contribute to NASA's core mission, making this event a truly grassroots effort. The Innovation Fair website provided a location for additional knowledge sharing, discussion, and voting. On March 3rd, 2016, the 'First Annual NASA Ames Innovation Fair' was held with 49 innovators and more than 300 participants collaborating and/or voting for the best innovations. Based on the voting results, seven projects were awarded seed funding for projects ranging from innovative cost models to innovations in aerospace technology. Surveys of both innovators and Fair participants show the Innovation Fair was successful in fostering cross-organizational collaborations, soliciting participation of non-technical innovations, and increasing employee engagement in influencing the future of NASA Ames Research Center. The grassroots component of the Innovation Fair has been bench marked by the agency as a solid foundation for increasing employee engagement in the development of game changing aerospace technology and processes in support of NASA's mission.

Ergonomics support for local initiative in improving safety and health at work: International Labour Organization experiences in industrially developing countries.

PubMed

Kawakami, T; Kogi, K

2005-04-15

Ergonomics has played essential roles in the technical cooperation activities of the International Labour Organization (ILO) in occupational safety and health in industrially developing countries. Ergonomics support focusing on practical day-to-day needs at the grass-root workplace has strengthened the local initiative in improving safety and health. Practical action-tools such as ergonomics checklists, local good example photos and group discussions have assisted workers and employers in identifying feasible solutions using locally available resources. Direct participation of workers and employers has been promoted in ergonomics training aimed at immediate solutions. ILO Guidelines on Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems have played increasingly important roles in the systematic planning of local improvement actions. Policy-level programmes to develop network support mechanisms to the grass-root workplace were essential for following up and sustaining local achievements. Practical ergonomics support tools, such as action checklists and low-cost improvement guides, should be developed and widely applied so as to reach grass-root levels and help local people create safer and healthier workplaces.

Population communication services: a global perspective.

PubMed

Piotrow, P T; Coleman, P L; Rimon, J G

1987-06-01

Communication support for health and family planning programs is receiving renewed attention. The johns Hopkins University (JHU) Population Communication Services (PCS) project was established in 1982 to respond to the increasing need for communication expertise, to provide a responsive source for advice, and to develop implement the new directions that are necessary to make family planning communication programs more effective. The project extends a range of services to government programs, private family planning associations, and to media that want to improve the content or coverage of family planning communication, JHU/PCS emphasizes the close links between good communication and good management and the need for managers at all levels, from the Minister of Health to the supervisor of grass-roots field workers, to understand the components of a communication program for the 1980s. Principles underlying the project's work include: communication as process rather than product, the audience as participant, linking mass media and interpersonal communication, coordination with and among agencies, training that is specific and relevant, IEC as institution building, use of the private sector, an attempt to recover some of the costs of IEC work, and ongoing evaluation of program activities. IEC activities can be strengthened considerably b a knowledgeable commitment at the top of the decision-making process; constant feedback from intended audiences; and interactions among service delivery personnel, influential community members, and the media. In turn, strong IEC activities can substantially strengthen existing family planning programs.

A Part, Yet Apart: South Asians in Asian America. Asian American History and Culture Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shankar, Lavina Dhingra, Ed.; Srikanth, Rajini, Ed.

The essays in this collection consider the extent to which South Asian Americans are included within "Asian America" as the term is applied to academic programs and admissions policies, grassroots community organizing and politics, and critical analyses of cultural products. The essays are: (1) "Within Kaleidoscope Eyes: The…

Language in the Marketplace.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Galloway, Vicki

These materials were developed by the South Carolina Department of Education for use in a public relations (PR) workshop for foreign language teachers. They deal with a grassroots PR campaign in terms of program planning to bridge the gap from present actuality to future possibilities. They also treat the means by which these efforts may be…

Smogbusters: Grassroots Action for Clean Air and Sustainable Transport in Australia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Manners, Eric; Wake, David; Carlisle, Rachel

2009-01-01

Smogbusters was a national, community-based, government-funded community education program promoting clean air and sustainable transport in Australia from 1994 to 2002. Smogbusters aimed to improve air quality primarily by raising awareness about motor vehicle transport and its negative impacts on health, the environment and communities, and by…

Human ergology that promotes participatory approach to improving safety, health and working conditions at grassroots workplaces: achievements and actions.

PubMed

Kawakami, Tsuyoshi

2011-12-01

Participatory approaches are increasingly applied to improve safety, health and working conditions of grassroots workplaces in Asia. The core concepts and methods in human ergology research such as promoting real work life studies, relying on positive efforts of local people (daily life-technology), promoting active participation of local people to identify practical solutions, and learning from local human networks to reach grassroots workplaces, have provided useful viewpoints to devise such participatory training programmes. This study was aimed to study and analyze how human ergology approaches were applied in the actual development and application of three typical participatory training programmes: WISH (Work Improvement for Safe Home) with home workers in Cambodia, WISCON (Work Improvement in Small Construction Sites) with construction workers in Thailand, and WARM (Work Adjustment for Recycling and Managing Waste) with waste collectors in Fiji. The results revealed that all the three programmes, in the course of their developments, commonly applied direct observation methods of the work of target workers before devising the training programmes, learned from existing local good examples and efforts, and emphasized local human networks for cooperation. These methods and approaches were repeatedly applied in grassroots workplaces by taking advantage of their the sustainability and impacts. It was concluded that human ergology approaches largely contributed to the developments and expansion of participatory training programmes and could continue to support the self-help initiatives of local people for promoting human-centred work.

Teacher Activism: Enacting a Vision for Social Justice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Picower, Bree

2012-01-01

This qualitative study focused on educators who participated in grassroots social justice groups to explore the role teacher activism can play in the struggle for educational justice. Findings show teacher activists made three overarching commitments: to reconcile their vision for justice with the realities of injustice around them; to work within…

Collaboration with Other International Agencies in Community Development Programmes: The Nigerian Experience.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ajayi, Christie Ade

1993-01-01

Provides an overview of the activities of the World Organization for Early Childhood Education in Nigeria in the areas of the development of grass-roots day-care centers, Van Leer Nigerian Education Trust activities, the training of nursery school teachers, and the celebration of Children's Day. (AC)

Left-Handed Fastballers: Scouting and Training America's Grass-Roots Leaders, 1966-1977.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nevin, David

From 1966 through 1977, 700 men and women were selected, primarily because they had demonstrated some capacity for personal initiative, to be fellows in the $11 million Leadership Development Program (LDP) supported by the Ford Foundation to develop new leadership in rural America. To operate LDP a decentralized organization with offices in Maine,…

Fermilab Friends for Science Education | About Us

Science.gov Websites

photo From a modest, grass-roots organization at its inception in 1983, FFSE has grown to become a use of technology. Programs continue to be developed through a partnership between FFSE and the Historical Review Testimonials Our Donors Board of Directors Board Tools Calendar Join Us Donate Now Get

Grassroots projects aimed at the built environment: Association with neighbourhood deprivation, land-use mix and injury risk to road users.

PubMed

Dubé, Anne Sophie; Beausoleil, Maude; Gosselin, Céline; Beaulme, Ginette; Paquin, Sophie; Pelletier, Anne; Goudreau, Sophie; Poirier, Marie-Hélène; Drouin, Louis; Gauvin, Lise

2014-07-09

1) To describe grassroots projects aimed at the built environment and associated with active transportation on the Island of Montreal; and 2) to examine associations between the number of projects and indicators of neighbourhood material and social deprivation and the built environment. We identified funding agencies and community groups conducting projects on built environments throughout the Island of Montreal. Through website consultation and a snowballing procedure, we inventoried projects that aimed at transforming built environments and that were carried out by community organizations between January 1, 2006, and November 1, 2010. We coded and validated information about project activities and created an interactive map using Geoclip software. Correlational analyses quantified associations between number of projects, neighbourhood characteristics and deprivation. A total of 134 community organizations were identified, and 183 grassroots projects were inventoried. A large number of projects were aimed at increasing awareness of/improving active or public transportation (n=95), improving road safety (n=84) and enhancing neighbourhood beautification and greening (n=69). The correlation between the presence of projects and the extent of neighbourhood material deprivation was small (Kendall's t=0.26, p<0.001), but in areas with greater social deprivation there were more projects (Kendall's t=0.38, p<0.001). Larger numbers of projects were also associated with the presence of more extensive land-use mix (Kendall's t=0.23, p<0.001) and a greater proportion of road intersections with injured pedestrians, cyclists and motor vehicle users (Kendall's t=0.43, p<0.001). There is significant community mobilization around built environments and active transportation. Investigations of the implementation processes and impacts are warranted.

Network Enabled Capabilities - Grassroots Perspectives

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-10-01

public release, distribution unlimited 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES See also ADM202422., The original document contains color images. 14. ABSTRACT 15...RTO-MP-IST-062 UNCLASSIFIED/UNLIMITED UNCLASSIFIED/UNLIMITED ActiveX component. The other parts of the page depend on the application requirements

Who I Am Is the Text. Who I Become Is the Purpose

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arbisi-Kelm, Heidi; Clay, Jasmine P.; Lin, Mariko M.; Horikawa, Rodney; Clifton, William H.; Kapani, Seema

2013-01-01

Student SEED (Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity) is a grassroots, social justice course in which participants actively engage in dialogue about diversity and social identity. This chapter examines Student SEED as a multicultural initiative.

Is Feminism Trending? Pedagogical Approaches to Countering (Sl)Activism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guillard, Julianne

2016-01-01

As they say in social media, feminism is "trending"; feminist conversations, grassroots movements, and activism mark a fourth wave of feminist practice and theory defined by digital spaces. This article considers the effectiveness of using social media as both a course assignment and as a conduit for civic engagement. I analyse survey…

Public Libraries as Places for Empowering Women through Autonomous Learning Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yoshida, Yuko

2013-01-01

Introduction. The purpose of this research is to investigate the significance of public libraries as educational institutions. The meaning of lifelong learning in public libraries from the perspective of women's autonomous activities is re-examined. Method. The literature of the grassroots library movement and that of the empowerment of women is…

World Health Organization's Innovative Direct Disbursement Mechanism for Payment of Grassroots Immunization Personnel and Operations in Nigeria: 2004-2015.

PubMed

Yehualashet, Yared G; Wadda, Alieu; Agblewonu, Koffi B; Zhema, Theophilus; Ibrahim, Al-Asi A; Corr, Alhagie; Linkins, Jennifer; Mkanda, Pascal; Vaz, Rui G; Nsubuga, Peter; Ashogbon, Daniel

2016-05-01

Following the 1988 World Health Assembly resolution to eradicate polio, the government of Nigeria, with support from partners, has been implementing several rounds of supplementary immunization activities (SIAs) each year. In addition to the technical requirements, the success of the polio eradication initiative depends on timely provision of adequate financial resources. Disbursement of funds for SIAs and payment of allowances to numerous vaccination personnel at the grassroots level are enormous operational challenges in a country the size of Nigeria. Upon donors' request for a transparent and effective payment mechanism, the World Health Organization (WHO), in consultation with national counterparts, created the innovative direct disbursement mechanism (DDM) in 2004. The objective of the DDM was to timely deploy operational funds at the field level and directly pay vaccination personnel allowances at the grassroots level. A detailed operational guideline for funds disbursement was developed in close consultation with central and field stakeholders. Multiyear financial resource requirements and operational budgets for every campaign were produced by an interagency-coordinated finance subcommittee. The WHO engaged a bank and an accounting firm as DDM partners to support disbursement of and accounting for the SIA funds, respectively. The 37 WHO field offices were equipped with electronic financial systems to support the DDM process, and temporary payment sites were set up to facilitate payment to vaccination personnel at the grassroots level. Coordination meetings among DDM partners were held regularly to reconcile financial records and address operational challenges. Between 2004 and 2014, DDM supported 99 polio and nonpolio vaccination campaigns, disbursing more than $370 million to about 16 million beneficiaries across 280 temporary payment sites. To mitigate security risks and reduce operational costs, the WHO and DDM partners introduced mobile payment to vaccination personnel in May 2015 in compliance with national regulations. A total of 97% of the targeted 1871 beneficiaries in 2 pilot sites were successfully paid through mobile payment, although some challenges remain to be addressed. The DDM has met its objectives with a high rate of financial accountability and transparency, despite persistent operational and security challenges. With support from Nigeria, the Pakistan polio vaccination program successfully adopted the DDM. The DDM continues to play an important role in effective implementation of the polio endgame strategy and the national immunization strategic plan. As part of polio legacy planning, we recommend the DDM as a model for other opportunities that involve the engagement of large field-level teams as new vaccines are introduced in Nigeria and elsewhere. © 2016 World Health Organization; licensee Oxford Journals.

Nevus Outreach, Inc.

MedlinePlus

... Connecting the Dots Grassroots Fundraiser Campaign Worldwide CMN Psychology Study Registration is Now Open Conference Schedule Highlights ... Connecting the Dots Grassroots Fundraiser Campaign Worldwide CMN Psychology Study Registration is Now Open Conference Schedule Highlights ...

The bay area wildfire forum

Treesearch

Todd E. Bruce

1995-01-01

Fire agencies throughout the San Francisco Bay Area formed a grassroots organization to influence a firesafe environment. The Bay Area Wildfire Forum (BAWF) was organized in 1992 to coordinate wildland fire training while promoting and encouraging further activities regarding wildland firefighting and fire prevention.

Human Rights Education as a Tool of Grassroots Organizing and Social Transformation: A Case Study from Turkey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ilkkaracan, Pinar; Amado, Liz Ercevik

2005-01-01

Women for Women's Human Rights (WWHR) -- New Ways has been carrying out a "Human Rights Education Program for Women" throughout Turkey for over a decade, in cooperation with community centers. The training has a holistic, comprehensive nature, linking several areas of human rights through a critical gender perspective lens. One of the…

2012 APPA Fellow Encourages Colleagues to Say Yes to Opportunities to Serve

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thaler-Carter, Ruth E.

2012-01-01

It should be no surprise that the 2012 APPA Fellow is William (Bill) Elvey, P.E., FMP. He has served the association from the grassroots level up through its highest ranks and created a still-continuing legacy of excellence and engagement--his theme when serving as APPA President--that has led to new services, programs, and partnerships for the…

The conferences for undergraduate women in physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blessing, Susan K.

2015-12-01

The American Physical Society Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics are the continuation of a grassroots collaborative effort that began in 2006. The goals of the conferences are to increase retention and improve career outcomes of undergraduate women in physics. I describe the conferences, including organization and participant response, and encourage other countries to host similar programs for their undergraduate women.

Literacy for Citizenship: Gender and Grassroots Dynamics in Brazil. SUNY Series, Literacy, Culture, and Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stromquist, Nelly P.

This book presents a case study of the MOVA (Movimento de Alfabetizacao de Jovens e Adultos) literacy program in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 1989-1993. It examines the meaning and uses of literacy at the micro- and macro-levels, the interplay between both levels, and forces influencing educational policy formation and outcome. The foreword provides…

Global Microlending in Education Reform: Enseñá Por Argentina and the Neoliberalization of the Grassroots

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Friedrich, Daniel S.

2010-01-01

This article examines the workings and underlying assumptions behind Enseñá por Argentina (Teach for Argentina), one specific program that takes part in the larger and expanding network of Teach for All, by thinking about the ways in which a global push for redefining teaching and teacher education encounters local characteristics and histories,…

Educational research at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine: a grassroots development.

PubMed

Thomas, Patricia A; Wright, Scott M; Kern, David E

2004-10-01

The Divisions of General Internal Medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have been a rich source of educational research. To better understand the facilitators and barriers to educational research within the divisions, the authors reviewed published educational research from the divisions published between 1995-2004 and examined the history, leadership decisions, and sentinel events that have allowed educational scholarship within the divisions to grow. The authors' analysis suggests a grassroots model of programmatic growth that includes a growing cadre of clinician-educator scholars, effective mentorship, a faculty development program, access to learners, access to research expertise, protected time for scholarship, some funding, and an institutional culture that stimulates scholarship. A medical education fellowship was integral to the model; fellows were first authors for 47% of reviewed manuscripts. Extramural funding has helped build an infrastructure that supports educational scholarship; however, only 12% of the publications have had extramural funding. Protected time for faculty is the characteristic of this model most at risk. While there has been a move toward more institutional support of educational research, it is clear that further growth in the educational research program will require noninstitutional resources.

Cardiovascular disease prevention in low resource settings: lessons from the Heartfile experience in Pakistan.

PubMed

Nishtar, Sania

2003-01-01

This paper outlines activities of the Heartfile Program in Pakistan (http://heartfile.org). The program focuses on cardiovascular disease prevention and health promotion, and includes several initiatives that encompass building policy, reorienting health services, and developing community interventions that utilize the print and electronic media and outreach at the grass-root level to incorporate social marketing approaches. Initiated by the nonprofit private sector, the program now links with major public sector primary healthcare programs, and is currently spearheading formulation of the National Action Plan on Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control in Pakistan. In addition, the program is being refined, validated, and packaged as a replicable model for other developing countries and in low resource settings, utilizing appropriate principles of franchising with inbuilt components sensitive to cultural and social adaptations. A review of the planning process, implementation strategy, and fund-raising experience is presented. Strategies unique to low resource settings, such as the development of cost- and time-efficient strategic alliances and partnerships, have also been highlighted. In addition, specific caveats are identified as being helpful to private sector development of chronic disease prevention programs in resource-constrained settings, and a road map to a sustainable public-private sector partnership is provided.

A Second Chance: Meanings of Body Weight, Diet, and Physical Activity to Women Who Have Experienced Cancer

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maley, Mary; Warren, Barbour S.; Devine, Carol M.

2013-01-01

Objective: To understand the meanings of diet, physical activity, and body weight in the context of women's cancer experiences. Design: Grounded theory using 15 qualitative interviews and 3 focus groups. Setting: Grassroots community cancer organizations in the northeastern United States. Participants: Thirty-six white women cancer survivors; 86%…

Organic Activists: Undocumented Youth Creating Spaces of Acompañamiento

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nuñez-Janes, Mariela; Ovalle, Mario

2016-01-01

Our research brings attention to undocumented youth activism as a space controlled by marginalized youth. We discuss the case study of a youth-led grassroots group in Texas to explore how undocumented youth engage a pedagogy of acompañamiento through activism. We worked with undocumented youth activists as allies over the past seven years and…

Changing Safety Culture, One Step at a Time: The Value of the DOE-VPP Program at PNNL

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wright, Patrick A.; Isern, Nancy G.

2005-02-01

The primary value of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) is the ongoing partnership between management and staff committed to change Laboratory safety culture one step at a time. VPP enables PNNL's safety and health program to transcend a top-down, by-the-book approach to safety, and it also raises grassroots safety consciousness by promoting a commitment to safety and health 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. PNNL VPP is a dynamic, evolving program that fosters innovative approaches to continuous improvement in safety and health performance at the Laboratory.

Grassroots Efforts: If You Plant Them, They Will Grow!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hurley, Kimberly S.

2016-01-01

This article presents a four-tiered framework for the development of advocacy skills among teacher preparation professionals that reflects grassroots advocacy efforts and endorses the value of the physical and health education disciplines.

Global Pediatric Oncology: Lessons From Partnerships Between High-Income Countries and Low- to Mid-Income Countries

PubMed Central

Antillon, Federico; Pedrosa, Francisco; Pui, Ching-Hon

2016-01-01

Partnerships between medical institutions in high-income countries (HICs) and low- to mid-income countries (LMICs) have succeeded in initiating and expanding pediatric cancer control efforts. The long-term goal is consistently a sustainable national pediatric cancer program. Here, we review the elements required for successful implementation, development, and long-term sustainability of pediatric cancer programs in LMICs that first arise as partnerships with institutions in HICs. Although plans must be adapted to each country's resources, certain components are unfailingly necessary. First, an essential step is provision of treatment regardless of ability to pay. Second, financial support for program development and long-term sustainability must be sought from sources both international and local, public and private. A local leader, typically a well-trained pediatric oncologist who devotes full-time effort to the project, should direct medical care and collaborate with hospital, governmental, and community leadership and international agencies. Third, nurses must be trained in pediatric cancer care and allowed to practice this specialty full-time. It is also essential to develop a grassroots organization, such as a foundation, dedicated solely to pediatric oncology. Its members must be trained and educated to provide pediatric cancer advocacy, fundraising, and (in concert with government) program sustainability. Finally, a project mentor in the HIC is crucial and should explore the possibility of collaborative research in the LMIC, which may offer significant opportunities. Relationships between the partnership's leaders and influential individuals in the community, hospital, grassroots foundation, and government will lay the foundation for productive collaboration and a sustainable pediatric oncology program. PMID:26578620

On the Right Track: Servol's Early Childhood and Adolescent Development Programmes in Trinidad and Tobago. Education for All: Making It Work. Innovations Series, 5.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guttman, Cynthia

Born in the aftermath of social upheaval in 1970, Servol (Service Volunteered for All) is a grassroots community development organization working with preschoolers and adolescents in the Caribbean nations of Trinidad and Tobago. This booklet describes the efforts and successes of this program, founded through the intervention of a Catholic priest…

State Theory, Grassroots Agency, and Global Policy Transfer: The Life and Death of Colombia's "Escuela Nueva in Brazil" (1997-2012)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tarlau, Rebecca

2017-01-01

This article analyzes the transfer and 15-year policy trajectory of Colombia's "global best practice" "Escuela Nueva in Brazil." This program, initially transferred to Brazil in 1997 with the help of the World Bank, was largely unknown for the first decade of its life span. Then, between 2008 and 2011, "after" the…

Thinking Inside the Box

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Golding, Barry

2011-01-01

The "men's sheds" movement is a grassroots phenomenon that has engaged and inspired men from communities across Australia in hands-on, workshop-based social activity. This article seeks to "unwrap" one of several forms of learning that have been found to be enthusiastically embraced by older men previously thought of, almost…

Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development: Path to Managing Rural Grass-roots Party Organization from the Perspective of Impetus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhong, Xianzhe

2018-02-01

Impetus is the most fundamental guarantee for the survival and progress of organization. The rural grass-roots party organization should serve as a battle fortress of party helping realize the purpose of party in the village. Therefore, to strengthen the management of rural party branches, it is imperative to optimize their impetus, stepping on the basic paths: developing and utilizing material force, and digging and stimulating spiritual force for rural grass-roots party organization construction; adhering to the dialectical view on impetus to highlight both material and spiritual motivations.

Humanizing birth: a global grassroots movement.

PubMed

Goer, Henci

2004-12-01

A survey of a convenience sample of 24 grassroots birth activist groups based in several countries revealed remarkable similarities despite differences in culture and maternity care systems. With few exceptions, they began with a few individuals, generally women, who were dissatisfied or angry with an obstetric management system that failed to provide safe, effective, humane maternity care, that suppressed alternative models of care and nonconforming practitioners, or both. Responses indicated that organizational structures tend to fall into a limited number of categories, and strategies intended to accomplish reform overlap considerably. All groups have experienced difficulties resulting from the hegemony of conventional obstetric management and active opposition of practitioners within that model. Most groups are volunteer based, and all struggle under the handicap of limited resources compared with the forces arrayed against them and the scope of what they hope to accomplish.

World Health Organization's Innovative Direct Disbursement Mechanism for Payment of Grassroots Immunization Personnel and Operations in Nigeria: 2004–2015

PubMed Central

Yehualashet, Yared G.; Wadda, Alieu; Agblewonu, Koffi B.; Zhema, Theophilus; Ibrahim, Al-asi A.; Corr, Alhagie; Linkins, Jennifer; Mkanda, Pascal; Vaz, Rui G.; Nsubuga, Peter; Ashogbon, Daniel

2016-01-01

Background. Following the 1988 World Health Assembly resolution to eradicate polio, the government of Nigeria, with support from partners, has been implementing several rounds of supplementary immunization activities (SIAs) each year. In addition to the technical requirements, the success of the polio eradication initiative depends on timely provision of adequate financial resources. Disbursement of funds for SIAs and payment of allowances to numerous vaccination personnel at the grassroots level are enormous operational challenges in a country the size of Nigeria. Upon donors' request for a transparent and effective payment mechanism, the World Health Organization (WHO), in consultation with national counterparts, created the innovative direct disbursement mechanism (DDM) in 2004. The objective of the DDM was to timely deploy operational funds at the field level and directly pay vaccination personnel allowances at the grassroots level. Methods. A detailed operational guideline for funds disbursement was developed in close consultation with central and field stakeholders. Multiyear financial resource requirements and operational budgets for every campaign were produced by an interagency-coordinated finance subcommittee. The WHO engaged a bank and an accounting firm as DDM partners to support disbursement of and accounting for the SIA funds, respectively. The 37 WHO field offices were equipped with electronic financial systems to support the DDM process, and temporary payment sites were set up to facilitate payment to vaccination personnel at the grassroots level. Coordination meetings among DDM partners were held regularly to reconcile financial records and address operational challenges. Results. Between 2004 and 2014, DDM supported 99 polio and nonpolio vaccination campaigns, disbursing more than $370 million to about 16 million beneficiaries across 280 temporary payment sites. To mitigate security risks and reduce operational costs, the WHO and DDM partners introduced mobile payment to vaccination personnel in May 2015 in compliance with national regulations. A total of 97% of the targeted 1871 beneficiaries in 2 pilot sites were successfully paid through mobile payment, although some challenges remain to be addressed. Discussion. The DDM has met its objectives with a high rate of financial accountability and transparency, despite persistent operational and security challenges. With support from Nigeria, the Pakistan polio vaccination program successfully adopted the DDM. The DDM continues to play an important role in effective implementation of the polio endgame strategy and the national immunization strategic plan. As part of polio legacy planning, we recommend the DDM as a model for other opportunities that involve the engagement of large field-level teams as new vaccines are introduced in Nigeria and elsewhere. PMID:26908746

Citizen Action and Social Change: A Bibliography.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elias, Robert; Woodbridge, Michael P.

Over 1,200 references are cited in this bibliography of literature representing two major areas of citizen participation: community organizing and grassroots participation. Materials, most of which were published between 1970 and the present, deal mainly with local citizen activism that operates both inside and outside normal government channels.…

Black Feminist Activism: Theory as Generating Collective Resistance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pérez, Michelle Salazar; Williams, Eloise

2014-01-01

Black feminist scholars have theorized ways in which power permeates our everyday lived experiences. The authors of this article, a university faculty member and a grassroots community activist, share their collective Black feminist activist efforts to find spaces of resistance and empowerment within oppressive conditions in the city of New…

Grassroots Empowerment of Women: Portraits of Four Villages in Sri Lanka

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jeris, Laurel; Gajanayake, Jaya; Ismail, Jesima; Ebert, Seela; Peris, Amara; Wanasundara, Leelangi; Diyadawagamage, Nalika

2006-01-01

This paper describes a participatory research (PR) project encompassing a capacity-development programme and advocacy skill-building initiative for rural women. The project actively engaged four prominent women's non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Sri Lanka: Agromart Foundation, Centre for Women's Research (CENWOR), Sarvodaya Women's…

Pioneering Education Leadership for 2001: Oklahoma's CSPD Initiative from a Rural Regional Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beckner, Claudia

Oklahoma's Comprehensive System of Personnel Development (CSPD) initiative was developed to meet requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. CSPD compensates for the state's geographic diversity through regionalization, which allows a grassroots approach to determining preservice and inservice training activities for special…

Pedagogy of the Poor: Building the Movement to End Poverty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baptist, Willie; Rehmann, Jan

2011-01-01

In this book, the authors present a new kind of interdisciplinary pedagogy that brings together antipoverty grassroots activism and relevant social theories about poverty. Closely linked to the Poverty Initiative at Union Theological Seminary, this unique book combines the oral history of a renowned antipoverty organizer with accessible…

ESP--Things Fall Apart?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Waters, Alan

This paper asserts that a gap is developing in English for Special Purposes (ESP) between theory and practice, between received wisdom and grassroots activity that are important to understand when considering the future of ESP. Evidence for these gaps in ESP are discussed in detail in the context of course design, academic input, and the…

Tiempos Pasados (Past Times). Grass-Roots Oral History.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hunsaker, Alan, Ed.

Compiled with learning objectives, suggested lesson plans, learning center activities, and selected teacher and student bibliographies for use at the elementary level, transcripts of oral history interviews with 11 Mexican Americans in San Bernardino County's West End provide understanding of the mass movement of Mexicans to the United States in…

The Third Turn toward the Social: Nancy Welch's "Living Room," Tony Scott's "Dangerous Writing," and Rhetoric and Composition's Turn toward Grassroots Political Activism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kinney, Kelly; Girshin, Thomas; Bowlin, Barrett

2013-01-01

This review essay examines recent texts by Nancy Welch and Tony Scott, both of which use embodied activism as a starting point for their inquiries. Taken together, these works point to a distinct shift in composition studies' turn toward the social, one that calls on workers both within and outside the academy to actively engage in grassroots…

The Perfect Model for the Perfect Storm: Creating an Effective State to Grassroots Comprehensive Public Health and Medical Strategic Communication Model

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-12-01

Public Health Emergency Activations 2004–2013 ...................................54 Table 3. MS ESF-8/What, Who, and Why...trainings, activations , etc. Additionally, the MS public health districts have ESF-8 databases of contacts that have been built over the years from...entities together to discuss the formalization of a state-level healthcare coalition. During this meeting, two primary activities occurred that were

Revisiting "Ella's Song"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Yolanda Y.

2013-01-01

Ella Josephine Baker (1903-1986), an African-American human rights activist, influenced the trajectory of the modern civil rights movement with her emphasis on local action, liberative pedagogy, and grassroots involvement. She modeled a pedagogy of liberation convinced that grassroots efforts at participatory democracy could empower diverse…

Technology in action

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

In keeping with the NASA Administrator's announcement that technology transfer will become a fundamental mission of NASA, the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has initiated new programs to reach the heartland of U.S. industry. The Center has continued to expand its already well-established outreach program aimed at helping American business, industry, and academia at the grassroots level. The goal is to ensure that America regains and maintains its proper place of leadership among the world's technologically developed nations. MSFC's national goal is to enhance America's competitiveness in the world marketplace, fortify the value of the dollar, and ensure technological breakthroughs by American laboratories benefit taxpayers and industries. The Technology Utilization (TU) Office at MSFC believes a number of measures are possible to slow, then halt, and ultimately reverse the erosion of American technological leadership. MSFC's TU Office is reaching out to American industry on an increasingly broadening scope, facilitating the transfer of NASA derived technologies to American businesses, industries, educational institutions, and individuals. There are many valid approaches to achieving this goal. Some, such as the National Technology Initiative, begin at the top and work down through America's top corporate structure. Others, such as the technology transfer program that MSFC has implemented, begin at the one-on-one, grassroots level -- working with small and medium-sized firms that form the bulk of American industry. What can be done by one NASA center is, admittedly, limited. But by extrapolating this one-on-one approach to the more than 700 Federal laboratories, a great deal can be accomplished. This report contains an examination of outreach and in reach programs, problem statements programs, applications projects, new technology reporting, new technology administration, and the need for increased resources to further facilitate technology transfer.

Investing for the Future: 2002 in Review.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Inter-American Foundation, Arlington, VA.

The Inter-American Foundation (IAF) is an independent foreign assistance agency of the United States government that provides grants to grassroots organizations in Latin America and the Caribbean. The IAF responds to innovative, participatory and sustainable self-help development projects proposed by grassroots groups and supporting organizations,…

Mobilizing women at the grassroots to shape health policy: a case study of the Global Campaign for Microbicides.

PubMed

Forbes, Anna

2013-11-01

Competition to advance issues on public policy agendas is constant. Political scientists agree that professional "policy entrepreneurs" (researchers, academics, and bureaucrats) serve as conduits in this process. Grassroots advocacy has always been part of the political landscape as non-professional people also take on the role of policy advocates or activists, to get specific problems and preferred solutions onto public and policy agendas and motivate policymakers to take action. The contribution of grassroots advocacy to significant policy changes is often under-funded because its impacts are hard to isolate and quantify, and are often most evident in retrospect. This paper examines the contribution of the Global Campaign for Microbicides to the movement to expand the range of HIV prevention options for women and describes how it mobilized hundreds of grassroots policy activists around the world to take coordinated action on this issue. It reviews the Campaign's accomplishments and highlights some of its strengths and weaknesses. Finally, the paper considers the value of similar efforts on the part of grassroots advocates seeking to influence the post-ICPD and post-2015 development agendas as they are being negotiated. Decisions regarding what kind of advocacy work is carried out during this process, and by whom and how, will inevitably shape the content of these new frameworks. Copyright © 2013 Reproductive Health Matters. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Women's Perspectives of Peace: Unheard Voices from Pakistan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Habib, Zehra

2013-01-01

Pakistan is currently impacted by rampant terrorism and is simultaneously grappling with intrastate ethnic and sectarian violence. The focus of this dissertation was on examining grassroots Pakistani women's perspectives on peace and women's contributions to peace in Pakistan. The study was centered on grassroots women because their voices remain…

Making it in a 'saturated' market. How the Spence Center wins women's hearts with grass-roots marketing.

PubMed

Moore, P L

1997-01-01

The Spence Centers, full-service, independent clinics for women, depend on grass-roots outreach to cultivate customers and build brand equity. The Centers have garnered national and international press coverage and made enough friends to open a fourth operation.

The Parents Movement: Grassroots Origins.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sielaff, Marcia

The grassroots parent-based effort to reform public education predated, by more than a decade, the national awakening to problems in the schools. It began when parents became aware that the educational establishment perceived its "duty" to mold children's attitudes as a higher priority than the school's cognitive function and certainly…

The Landscape of Education "Reform" in Chicago: Neoliberalism Meets a Grassroots Movement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lipman, Pauline

2017-01-01

This article examines the dialectics of Chicago's neoliberal education policies and the grassroots resistance that parents, teachers, and students have mounted against them. Grounding the analysis in racial capitalism and neoliberal urban restructuring, I discuss interconnections between neoliberal urban policy, racism, and education to clarify…

Grassroots Leadership: Encounters with Power Dynamics and Oppression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kezar, Adrianna

2011-01-01

This article focuses on the nature of power dynamics that faculty and staff grassroots leaders encounter as they attempt to create change. I identified five distinctive types of power dynamics--"oppression," "silencing," "controlling," "inertia," and "micro-aggressions" from the most overt to more subtle and covert forms. Staff experience multiple…

Grassroots Journalism in the City: Cleveland's Neighborhood Newspapers. Monograph No. 6.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jeffres, Leo W.; And Others

The first section of this monograph on community newspapers describes the patterns and trends of "grassroots journalism" in the Cleveland, Ohio, area. Based on interviews with 37 newspaper editors, the following topics are covered: origins and history, goals, organization and structure, method of production, advertising, content,…

Mobilization and Involvement of Students and Teachers in Implementing the Adult and Extension Education Programmes at the Grass-Root Level with Special Reference to Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirapalli, India: A Case Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parthasarthy, K.; Balasaravanan, T.

India has made considerable progress toward universal primary education but has the dubious distinction of having the highest illiteracy rates in the world. Stringent endeavors are being made at the national, state, and district levels to eradicate illiteracy through mass approaches and programs. Extension is recognized as the third dimension of…

Interview. Maria Isabal Plata, executive director of Profamilia, talks to Caroline Sweetman about the work of the organisation in Colombia.

PubMed

Sweetman, C

1996-06-01

In this interview, Maria Isabal Plata discusses the work of the nongovernmental organization Profamilia in Colombia. Since its founding in 1965, Profamilia has assumed direct and indirect responsibility for nearly 70% of family planning (FP) and reproductive health activities in the country. These activities are complemented by a legal service program, an evaluation and research program, and a documentation center. In Colombia, women gained equal rights under the law in 1974 and a constitutional prohibition on discrimination in 1991, but sex stereotypes still dictate responsibility for family chores. When women realize their economic and social rights, poverty and inequalities will diminish. Thus, it is crucial to safeguard reproductive and sexual rights and ban violence against women. The traditional concept of family forces a disregard for the rights of family members and allows societies to oppose the interests of women. The aftermath of the UN Fourth Women's Conference in Colombia will be to work towards achieving full citizenship for women and democratic societies. The experience women's groups had at the conference has created a situation in which grassroots organizations can consider beginning to work with development organizations to achieve some of these goals.

Inter-American Foundation: '95 in Review, October 1, 1994 to September 30, 1995.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Inter-American Foundation, Arlington, VA.

This report summarizes 1995 activities of the Inter-American Foundation (IAF), an independent agency of the U.S. government. The IAF promotes equitable, responsible, and participatory self-help development in the Caribbean and Latin America by awarding grants directly to local grassroots organizations, as well as to larger organizations that…

Inter-American Foundation: '94 in Review, October 1, 1993 to September 30, 1994.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Inter-American Foundation, Arlington, VA.

This report summarizes 1994 activities of the Inter-American Foundation (IAF), an independent agency of the U.S. government. The IAF promotes equitable, responsive, and participatory self-help development in the Caribbean and Latin America by awarding grants directly to local grassroots organizations, as well as to larger organizations that…

Developing Guidelines for IRM: A Grassroots Process in a Decentralized Environment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balkan, Lore; Sheldon, Philip

1990-01-01

The offices of Information Resource Management and Institutional Research at Virginia Tech developed a set of guidelines for information management. This article describes the historical evolution, the forces that motivated the development of the guidelines, and the consensus-building activities that led to the acceptance of the guidelines.…

Rural Ties to Computer Networks: A Sociological Overview.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shane, Jackie C.

1994-01-01

Discusses using the Internet as a tool for delivering information to rural areas and the possible benefits, such as telecommuting, effective dissemination of medical information, and the promotion of grass-roots activism. The means rural residents use to connect to the Internet and their use of bulletin board systems are described. (nine…

A Conceptual Model for Supporting Para-Teacher Learning in an Indian Non-Governmental Organization (NGO)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raval, Harini; McKenney, Susan; Pieters, Jules

2010-01-01

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are being recognized globally for their influential role in realizing the UN Millennium Development Goal of education for all in developing countries. NGOs mostly employ untrained para-educators for grassroots activities. The professional development of these teachers is critical for NGO effectiveness, yet…

Environmental Behavior and Gender: An Emerging Area of Concern for Environmental Education Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sakellari, Maria; Skanavis, Constantina

2013-01-01

Ecofeminism suggests that women are more active than men regarding environmental issues for a variety of social, cultural, and biological reasons. In support to these arguments, women predominate within the overall grassroots of the Environmental Justice movement. However, claims have been made that environmental education theory and research are…

Improving Nutritional Health in Schools: Gardens in Moldova

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pearson, Joanne M.

2008-01-01

International activities of FCS professionals take many forms, most often at the grassroots level making a difference in the daily lives of people and their communities, far from their own communities. A 2 1/2-year project, supported by the Monsanto Fund and an International Federation of Home Economics (IFHE) project grant, developed school…

"Yes, You Can": From Symbolic Resistance to Social Activism and Back

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lev-Aladgem, Shulamith

2017-01-01

This article presents a singular historical moment in which the ethnic counter-theatre of the 1970s in Jerusalem, which had emerged out of the Hapanterim Hashchorim (Black Panthers) social movement, generated another social movement. This offers a particular example of a grassroots theatre that directly affected and intervened in the complex…

Putting Teachers First: Leading Change through Design--Initiating and Sustaining Effective Teaching of Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Proffitt-White, Rob

2017-01-01

The Teachers First initiative is a grass-roots cluster-model approach for bringing together primary and secondary teachers and school principals: to analyse student performance data; design and practice activities and assessment tools; and promote teaching practices that address students' learning difficulties in mathematics. The balance of both…

Putting a Lid on Campaign Spending: A Lesson Plan.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koman, Rita G.

1998-01-01

Presents a high school lesson plan to teach students that democratic citizenship is not passive and to prepare them to take part in grassroots education and action. Presents a historical overview of campaign-finance debates and a series of activities that use this material to engage students in their own debates. (DSK)

Conservation in a World of Six Billion: A Grassroots Action Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hren, Benedict J.

This grassroots action guide features a conservation initiative working to bring the impacts of human population growth, economic development, and natural resource consumption into balance with the limits of nature for the benefit of current and future generations. Contents include information sheets entitled "Six Billion People and Growing,""The…

Poverty and Wellbeing at the "Grassroots"--How Much Is Visible to Researchers?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tiwari, Meera

2009-01-01

This paper discusses the grassroots level understanding of poverty and wellbeing. There is rich debate and ever expanding literature on the meaning of wellbeing and poverty and their relationship in developing countries. In recent times wellbeing and poverty have been scrutinised within the discourse on multidimensionality of poverty. Most…

Beyond Terminology: The Policy Impact of a Grassroots Movement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ford, Marty; Acosta, Annie; Sutcliffe, T. J.

2013-01-01

This article discusses the history of the grassroots movement led by self-advocates and their families to replace the stigmatizing term "mental retardation" with "intellectual disability" in federal statute. It also describes recent and pending changes in federal regulations and policy to adopt the new terminology for Social Security and Medicaid.

Promoting Grassroots Change in Higher Education: The Promise of Virtual Networks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kezar, Adrianna; Lester, Jaime

2009-01-01

This article starts by presenting five scenarios, each represents a significant type of grassroots change that is occurring at colleges and universities across the country. Those who are instigating these changes have little formal authority. The authors recently conducted a study to document and better understand these kinds of changes and the…

Characteristics and Factors of the Grassroots Employment of College Graduates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Youhang, Wang; Dongmao, Wen

2015-01-01

Based on a national survey of 30 universities in eight Chinese provinces in 2011, this empirical study shows that, despite government policies encouraging college graduates to work at the grassroots level, few students actually do so, due to concerns about their career prospects. Human capital, family, and school background and job search…

A Grassroots Prototype for Trauma-Informed Child Welfare System Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henry, James; Richardson, Margaret; Black-Pond, Connie; Sloane, Mark; Atchinson, Ben; Hyter, Yvette

2011-01-01

The development of trauma-informed child welfare systems (TICWSs) that advance individual agency practice to target transformation of the system as a whole has been conceptualized but not documented. A grassroots effort to build a TICWS with key participants (e.g., Department of Human Services, Community Mental Health, Family Court, schools) in…

Researching Multilingualism and Superdiversity: Grassroots Actions and Responsibilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wei, Li

2014-01-01

The articles in this thematic issue document studies of grassroots actions in promoting multilingualism across different sectors of society as well as in different social and professional domains. In doing so, the contributors raise issues of the relevance of the notion of community in the age of superdiversity and the researcher's…

OSUL2013: Fostering Organizational Change through a Grassroots Planning Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schlosser, Melanie

2011-01-01

This paper provides background on planning and organizational culture change in libraries and describes a grassroots planning process taking place at the Ohio State University Libraries. Now in its third phase, the process aims to create a long-term plan for the organization while fostering a more collaborative, innovative culture.

From school classes to UNESCO: IYL-enabled environments for tackling the STEM skills shortage through student-led outreach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Posner, Matthew T.; John, Pearl V.; Wong, Nicholas H. L.; Mittal, Vinita; Nunez-Velazquez, Martin M.

2016-09-01

The accepted industrial skills shortage in the subjects of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in the United Kingdom has led to an increasing drive for universities to work with a wider pool of potential students. One contributor to this drive is the Lightwave Roadshow, a photonics-focused outreach program run by postgraduate students from the University of Southampton. The program has benefitted from the unique platform of the International Year of Light (IYL) 2015 for the development and support of hands-on and interactive outreach activities. In this report we review Lightwave activities facilitated by IYL that focused on widening participation for students aged 6 to 18 years from a multitude of societal categories; the roadshow has directly benefitted from the significance and investment into the IYL in conjunction with university recruitment strategies, local schools and the support of international organizations such as SPIE and OSA. Lightwave has used the foundation of the IYL to provide a wide range of activities for over 1,200 UK students in 53 different schools; the assessment tools used to measure learning outcomes, reach and impact are also discussed. The program's activities have been developed to make younger age groups the center of the outreach activity and create an environment which encourages youth pursuit of optics and science from a grassroots level upwards; to illustrate this we will outline a Lightwave project endorsed by the IYL steering committee to permit two 6th form students to attend the IYL opening ceremony in Paris.

A Guide to Grassroots Activism: Moving Nursing Education's Public Policy Agenda. Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

American Association of Colleges of Nursing, Washington, DC.

This guide is intended to help people in the nursing profession, especially deans at schools of nursing, to effectively influence public policy at the federal level. Introductory material identifies key Senate and House committees and stresses the importance of establishing and maintaining a relationship with one's representatives in the Congress.…

Practitioner-Initiated Workplace-Based Conjoint Collaboration within an Adult Education Institution toward Democratic Schooling: A Distributed Leadership Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fang, Ya-Hui; Huang, Shen-Tzay

2015-01-01

This paper examines an account of a practitioner-initiated transformation of workplace-based social relationship within a grassroots adult education institution. This tripartite relationship among adult students, staff and teachers, abbreviated as AST, is a major driving force for activities and missionary functioning of the XinZhuang Community…

Our Lyrics Will Not Be on Lockdown: An Arts Collective's Response to an Incarceration Nation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Keisha

2010-01-01

Recognizing the unprecedented proliferation of prisons in the United States, Blackout Arts Collective (BAC), a grassroots organization working to empower communities of color through the arts, education, and activism, launched a national tour--"Lyrics on Lockdown (LOL): Slamming the Prison Industrial Complex." As a BAC member, I participated in…

Inter-American Foundation: 1993 in Review, October 1, 1992 to September 30, 1993.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Inter-American Foundation, Arlington, VA.

This report summarizes 1993 activities of the Inter-American Foundation (IAF), an independent agency of the U.S. government. The IAF promotes equitable and participatory self-help development in the Caribbean and Latin America by awarding grants directly to local grassroots organizations and small enterprises, as well as to larger organizations…

School, Activism and Politics at the Movies: Educator Reactions to the Film "Waiting for 'Superman'"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wessel Powell, Christy

2014-01-01

Context: The documentary film about U.S. education reform, "Waiting for 'Superman'," was met with acclaim and controversy when released to theaters in 2010, and again when launching its grassroots "host a screening" campaign in 2011. The campaign ran concurrent with 2011 state legislative sessions, during which several states…

Chapter 4: Short-Cycle Higher Education in the Netherlands--Adoption and Implementation of the New Associate Degree Qualification

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Daale, Hans

2010-01-01

Since 2006, the Netherlands has been actively engaged in a process of developing, piloting, and institutionalizing a new 2-year, short-cycle higher education degree, titled the "associate degree". This initiative evolved as a collaborative grassroots effort spearheaded by several Dutch national higher education and business organizations…

"To Balance the Picture": Peace Activists and the Struggle for Equal Access in Chicago Schools, 1980-1985

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kershner, Seth

2014-01-01

For more than forty years, parents, teachers, veterans, and community activists have engaged in grassroots resistance to the military's presence in schools. The historical study of campaigns against militarism in schools remains underdeveloped. This is a glaring omission, given the breadth and history of this activism. Militarism in the…

Celebrating 25 Years. Inter-American Foundation: '96 in Review, October 1, 1995 to September 30, 1996.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Inter-American Foundation, Arlington, VA.

This report summarizes 1996 activities of the Inter-American Foundation (IAF), an independent agency of the U.S. government. The IAF promotes equitable, responsible, and participatory self-help development in the Caribbean and Latin America by awarding grants directly to local grassroots organizations, as well as to larger organizations that…

Building Democracy from the Grassroots. Inter-American Foundation: 2001 in Review, October 1, 2000 to September 30, 2001.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Durbin, Paula, Ed.

The Inter-American Foundation (IAF), an independent agency of the U.S. government, funds innovative, participatory, and sustainable self-help development projects proposed and managed by grassroots groups and supportive organizations in Latin America and the Caribbean. IAF also encourages partnerships among community organizations, businesses, and…

From the Grassroots: Case Studies of Eight Rural Self-Development Efforts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flora, Jan L.; And Others

Grassroots efforts were examined through a survey of 103 self-development projects across the United States, enriched by an indepth study of 8 successful and unsuccessful cases. They were as follows: Revolving Loan Fund, Mankato, Kansas; Orofino Unlimited, Orofino, Idaho; Center for Industry, Rome, Georgia; Windmill Market Farm and Craft Co-op,…

Implementation of a School Districtwide Grassroots Antibullying Initiative: A School Staff and Parent-Focused Evaluation of Because Nice Matters

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

De Pedro, Kris Tunac; Pineda, Diana; Capp, Gordon; Moore, Hadass; Benbenishty, Rami; Astor, Ron Avi

2017-01-01

Military-connected youths experience stressful life events, including deployments and multiple school transitions, that make them vulnerable to bullying. Social workers have highlighted the power of grassroots school community initiatives that address risk issues among youths while empowering the community (see http://www.thecommunityguide.org).…

Understanding the Formation, Functions, and Challenges of Grassroots Leadership Teams

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lester, Jaime; Kezar, Adrianna J.

2012-01-01

This study examined the nature, characteristics, and challenges of grassroots leadership teams and the role of these factors in promoting cognitive complexity in order to provide insight into collective forms of bottom-up change. The study is framed by the literature on leadership teams. Using interviews from a case study conducted at five higher…

Design, Participation, and Social Change: What Design in Grassroots Spaces Can Teach Learning Scientists

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zavala, Miguel

2016-01-01

While a science of design (and theory of learning) is certainly useful in design-based research, a participatory design research framework presents an opening for learning scientists to rethink design and learning as processes. Grounded in the autoethnographic investigation of a grassroots organization's design of a local campaign, the author…

Health Care Reform and Social Movements in the United States

PubMed Central

Hoffman, Beatrix

2003-01-01

Because of the importance of grassroots social movements, or “change from below,” in the history of US reform, the relationship between social movements and demands for universal health care is a critical one. National health reform campaigns in the 20th century were initiated and run by elites more concerned with defending against attacks from interest groups than with popular mobilization, and grassroots reformers in the labor, civil rights, feminist, and AIDS activist movements have concentrated more on immediate and incremental changes than on transforming the health care system itself. However, grassroots health care demands have also contained the seeds of a wider critique of the American health care system, leading some movements to adopt calls for universal coverage. PMID:12511390

Grassroots movement building and preemption in the campaign for residential fire sprinklers.

PubMed

Pertschuk, Mark; Hobart, Robin; Paloma, Marjorie; Larkin, Michelle A; Balbach, Edith D

2013-10-01

Home fires account for 85% of fire deaths in the United States, the majority in 1- or 2-family homes lacking fire sprinklers. Since 1978, however, a grassroots movement has successfully promoted more than 360 local ordinances mandating sprinklers in all new residential construction, including 1- and 2-family homes. The homebuilding industry has responded by seeking state preemption of local authority, a strategy previously used by other industries concerned about protecting their profits. From 2009 through 2011, 13 states adopted laws eliminating or limiting local authority over residential fire sprinklers. This study of the residential sprinkler movement adds to our understanding of grassroots public health movements and provides additional evidence that preemption can have a negative impact on public health and safety.

MEASURING THE GRASSROOTS: Puzzles of Cultivating the Grassroots from the Top Down

PubMed Central

Eliasoph, Nina

2014-01-01

Does a participatory, open-ended organizational format inspire creativity and draw on participants' local knowledge? Many nonprofits operate under this assumption, and many of their financial sponsors agree, and therefore demand precise accounts documenting the nonprofits' “participatory” formats. In the U.S. youth civic engagement projects described here, the practice of accounting itself had an effect, regardless of funders' goals. Volunteers devoted more time to documenting just how participatory, open-ended and grassroots they were than they devoted to any other topic. Organizers strenuously tried to avert attention from accounting's importance, but could not avoid it. Volunteers could not reflect on the accounting process, or on the political questions behind it; knowledge of it became a repressed institutional intuition. PMID:25253914

Grasstops and Grassroots Approaches to Building Community Resilience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

LeBeau, A.; Bader, D.

2017-12-01

Climate change and extreme weather events pose complex risks to cities all over the world, impacting not only the built environment, but also social infrastructure. Because urban communities are culturally and socioeconomically diverse, as well as systemically complicated, climate change and extreme weather events will impact people differently even within a single city—not only because of where they live, but also because of who they are. The City of Long Beach, California, is in its very early stages of understanding its vulnerabilities. However, city leaders and community partners including the Aquarium of the Pacific are committed to creating a model climate resilient city. Climate change risks most relevant to Long Beach include drought (and freshwater shortages), extreme heat, sea level rise, and poor air quality. Over the past 18 months, the Aquarium of the Pacific has been testing elements of a broad-reaching education strategy to reach community stakeholders. Two multi-level approaches are designed to build awareness and momentum for climate resilience. A grassroots approach, called RESILIENT LB, focuses on an interactive outreach booth that travels to community events. The booth is staffed by educators with specific training on climate communication. Facilitated conversations help people identify what they love about Long Beach and immediate impacts that climate change will have on the things they value. A second, complimentary approach involves long-term community engagement through a grasstops-to-grassroots approach. Aquarium educators have been facilitating different climate resilience workshops for leaders from a variety of groups across Long Beach. These workshops give leaders the chance to reflect on how their communities may be impacted by climate change, and highlight adaptation (rather than mitigation) to climate change. In this session, we will share how these programs have evolved, lessons learned, and areas of growth.

Tanzania benefits from inter-organizational cooperation.

PubMed

1998-08-01

This article describes observations of a monitoring mission by JOICFP, the IPPF Regional Africa Office, and JICA in Tanzania, during June 7-13, 1998. The team visited the Morogoro region to review and assess the current major Integrated Program (IP) activities. The community-based distribution agents have been successful in gaining the trust of the community and contributing to social change. Agents are motivated to work and receive additional training, even though they do not receive a salary. Communities recognize the agents as their representatives. Training agents at the grass roots level has been cost effective. The visiting doctor scheme has been successful in maximizing use of health personnel. In one example, 92 patients from 3 villages were treated by a visiting doctor, who had an adequate supply of basic drugs. Service fees paid by patients cover the cost of medicine. Women receive reproductive health and sexually transmitted disease check-ups. The Income Generation Activities (IGA) program strengthens income generation and women's organizations. IGA also provides tools for masonry and carpentry to encourage male participation in the program. The IP has cooperative support from UMATI, the Ministry of Health, UNFPA, and the Japanese government. Essential drugs and equipment are procured by JICA, and delivered through the UMATI-JOICFP distribution channels to government health centers and dispensaries and UMATI's clinics. The experience has confirmed the ability of nongovernmental organizations to supply a multi-bilateral project. Grassroots staff are most appreciative.

Grassroots Movement Building and Preemption in the Campaign for Residential Fire Sprinklers

PubMed Central

Hobart, Robin; Paloma, Marjorie; Larkin, Michelle A.; Balbach, Edith D.

2013-01-01

Home fires account for 85% of fire deaths in the United States, the majority in 1- or 2-family homes lacking fire sprinklers. Since 1978, however, a grassroots movement has successfully promoted more than 360 local ordinances mandating sprinklers in all new residential construction, including 1- and 2-family homes. The homebuilding industry has responded by seeking state preemption of local authority, a strategy previously used by other industries concerned about protecting their profits. From 2009 through 2011, 13 states adopted laws eliminating or limiting local authority over residential fire sprinklers. This study of the residential sprinkler movement adds to our understanding of grassroots public health movements and provides additional evidence that preemption can have a negative impact on public health and safety. PMID:23948005

#Eduresistance: A Critical Analysis of the Role of Digital Media in Collective Struggles for Public Education in the Usa

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thapliyal, Nisha

2018-01-01

From Facebook-coordinated high-school walkouts to compelling Internet-based protest art that has accompanied recent teacher strikes, grassroots education activism in the USA has gone digital. Despite the proliferation of research on the mediatisation of education policy, few studies have explored the ways in which activists for public education…

Community Voice or Captive of the Right? A Closer Look at the Black Alliance for Educational Options.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lasdon, Erica; Keys, Carol; Neas, Ralph G.

This report examines the activities, funding, and affiliations of the Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO), highlighting its promotion of school vouchers, affiliations of its leaders and board of directors, and history of its funders. The BAEO bills itself as a grassroots coalition of African American leaders, though it is bankrolled by…

Comparison of Coaches' Perceptions and Officials Guidance towards Health Promotion in French Sport Clubs: A Mixed Method Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Hoye, A.; Heuzé, J.-P.; Larsen, T.; Sarrazin, P.

2016-01-01

Despite the call to improve health promotion (HP) in sport clubs in the existing literature, little is known about sport clubs' organizational capacity. Grounded within the setting-based framework, this study compares HP activities and guidance among 10 football clubs. At least three grassroots coaches from each club (n = 68) completed the Health…

Why won't it Stick? Positive Psychology and Positive Education.

PubMed

White, Mathew A

Following the launch of the positive psychology movement teachers and educators emerged as early adopters of this fledgling science. This approach was called positive education. It describes scientifically validated programs from positive psychology, taught in schools, that have an impact on student well-being. The growing body of evidence about the reach of positive psychology has formed a convincing case to consider well-being an operational goal for educational systems. It is argued that this goal is pivotal and should be pursued in the same way in which we develop strategies to harness academic growth, school retention rates, and student engagement. National education policies can have widespread influence at the grassroots level on school improvement, good quality of classroom teaching and learning, student performance, creating confident and creative individuals and active and informed citizens, but not necessarily on the preventative skills for lifelong well-being. In this article I take stock on the positive education movement. Three approaches to positive education are identified and eight hurdles to the field are noted as reasons why positive education won't stick in policy. Then, I reflect on two case studies: a Well-being Summit and Round Table held at Wellington College and No. 10 Downing Street and Dr. Martin Seligman's role as Adelaide's Thinker in Residence as examples of grass-roots initiatives in well-being. Finally, six strategies are suggested for researchers and practitioners to grow the field. Last, I argued that until research centers focus on the development of common definitions of the key terms underpinning positive psychology, positive education and well-being the impact of the movement will be limited to a handful of institutions as models of best practice.

Sustaining urban development through participation: an Ethiopian case study.

PubMed

Tadele, F

1996-02-01

Under the Mengistu regime, Addis Ababa was divided into six zones, 28 woredas, and 303 kebeles, the kebeles being the smallest grassroots administrative unit. To enhance community participation, the Kebele 29 Project promoted the establishment of grassroots community groups by dividing the kebele into four zones and 37 neighborhoods. Each neighborhood is represented by a chairperson and a deputy who take responsibility for reviewing the priority needs of households, relaying information between the project and the community, and following up the project interventions. The author considers the sustainability of income-generating activities established as part of many urban development projects instigated by development agencies, the likelihood of inhabitants generating enough income for the upkeep of new or improved infrastructure, and whether the necessary commitment from the community can be created in a situation in which civil organizations have been banned or discouraged. These issues are considered in the context of Oxfam UK/I's involvement in the Kebele 29 Project.

Grassroots branding.

PubMed

Ferris, Michael T

2005-04-01

In home care and hospice, effective branding begins at the grassroots level. Historically, high-level, widespread branding initiatives have proven relatively unsuccessful in these industries, and have not delivered a positive return on investment. This is generally because in home care and hospice, branding is most successfully implemented at individual and local levels. Since an agency's "brand" is established at this personal level, relationships are the crucial keys to sales and marketing success.

Enhancing young people's awareness.

PubMed

Doan Thi Tien

1995-01-01

The role of the Vietnam Youth Union (21 million members) is to educate the youth aged 14-28 years about the movement at the grassroots level. Since 1995, it has been entrusted with information, education, and communication (IEC) activities (implemented through the Educational Center for Population, Health, and Development) concerning family planning, the environment, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Mass media, direct communication, Youth Union leading staff, Youth Union cultural and arts activities, and advertisement have been used. 16 newspapers and magazines, a radio program, and a TV program disseminate information for the group. 1000 motivators' groups, 1370 Youth Clubs, and Youth Villages at the commune level work to enhance awareness and to change biased attitudes and habits. Leading staff speak at conferences and seminars that are attended by target groups. Art troupes perform at special local events; plays are organized and videos are shown. The HIV/AIDS information and prevention campaign is of great importance because research findings indicate that many young people believe that only prostitutes and drug addicts can be infected, and that condoms are bad and only for use with prostitutes. There are about 2300 persons infected with HIV in 14 provinces, mostly in the south and central regions. 131 are reported to have developed AIDS.

Creating a movement for active living via a media campaign.

PubMed

Huberty, Jennifer; Dodge, Tammie; Peterson, Kerri R; Balluff, Mary

2012-11-01

Activate Omaha (AO), a community-wide health initiative, was awarded a grant by Active Living by Design in 2003. To establish credibility of the partners in AO and increase awareness of active living in the community by emphasizing promotions (branding, logo recognition). Media, including billboards, TV and radio ads, high-profile spokespersons, grassroots efforts, and worksite "toolkits" featuring tips and creative messaging on physical activity were combined to incentivize people to be physically active. Campaign surveys were conducted by the Market Survey Research Group each year from 2005 to 2008. Survey data based on the first campaign indicated that 86% of Omahans wanted to be part of an active community and to be active with younger generations. The second campaign focused on getting families physically active together, and this survey data showed that citizens wanted to be a part of an active community. A third campaign added practical examples of citizens being active within the community and efforts expanded to worksites with consistent messaging for employees. The final survey indicated that 78% of respondents found Omaha to be an active community compared to 63% who had that response 3 years earlier. Activate Omaha was successful in gaining credibility and leveraging additional funding to implement complementary programming and physical projects, and as a result, changing community perceptions and influencing policy decisions. Copyright © 2012 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Feminist Organizing in Rural Nicaragua: Assessing a Psychosocial Process to Promote Empowered Solidarity.

PubMed

Dutt, Anjali

2018-04-19

This study examines a psychosocial process linking women's involvement in a grassroots women's organization with skills and experiences to promote empowered solidarity. Empowered solidarity is described as a process of increasing the sense of connection and capacity to create social transformation among a group of people united by interest in addressing a social issue. Data collected and analyzed for this research were 298 quantitative surveys conducted with two groups of women living in rural Nicaragua. One group of women were members of a grassroots feminist organization, and the other group lived in nearby communities where the organization did not offer programs. Findings document higher levels of leadership skills and sense of community, and lower levels of powerlessness among members of the organization. Additionally, tests of a process model using structural equation modeling provides support for a model that links involvement in the organization to women's increased interest in, capacity and experience in working to support women, broadly. Overall findings from this research are valuable to both community psychologists and groups seeking to enhance social justice and uphold feminist values of equity and community well-being. © Society for Community Research and Action 2018.

The AstroPAL Starter Pack: How to Create a Grad Mentoring Program That Fosters Equity and Inclusion in Your Department

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cabrera, Nicole

2017-01-01

The Astronomy Peer Advising Leaders program (AstroPAL) at Georgia State University is a grassroots effort initiated by one PhD student with no budget, yet has quickly become a successful program that especially impacts students of marginalized identities. AstroPAL provides guidance for incoming grad students and helps them adjust to the workload, stress, and other difficulties that can come with grad school. This talk will cover the AstroPAL goals and accomplishments, its logistical structure, and its longterm sustainability. We will discuss how the program has helped create a bridge between faculty and students as well as the positive effect it has had on our community. I will also provide tools that anyone can use to launch AstroPAL at their home institution.

"Do You Want Me to Translate This in English or in a Better Mandinka Language?": Unequal Literacy Regimes and Grassroots Spelling Practices in Peri-Urban Gambia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Juffermans, Kasper

2011-01-01

This paper presents a comparative ethnographic analysis of two versions of a grassroots text in Mandinka language, one written by a non-formally educated man, the other a respelling by a formally educated urbanite. The analysis points at a crucial difference in spelling practices and inequality in literacy regimes, i.e., between established…

Sunlight upon a Dark Sky Haiti's Urban Poor Responds to Socio-Political and Socio-Cultural Conflicts: A Case Study of the Grande Ravine Community Human Rights Council

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dimmett, Deborah Lynn

2010-01-01

This case study investigates the organizational characteristics of a Haitian grassroots community human rights council (CHRC) that emerged as a response to three politically motivated massacres. The impromptu grassroots response of this poor urban community is at the core of the following research question investigated in this study: "What…

A Comparison of Problems at the Grassroots Level in India Identified by Adults and Children: Implications for Design and Technology Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Datt, Sachin; Chunawala, Sugra

2018-01-01

The focus of Design and Technology (D&T) education (Wilson & Harris, 2004) has been on designing and making activities and in developing technological capabilities amongst students. Innovation is an important aspect of D&T that helps in creating new products and artefacts to overcome the limitations of existing ones. Problem solving…

Civil Rights Era Movers and Shakers in Higher Education: From Grassroots to Curricular Reform at San Francisco State College, 1967-1969

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thompson, Carolyn J.

2004-01-01

Thoughts of college student protests during the late 1960's and early 1970's often ignite memories of demonstrations against the Vietnam War. Stories of college student activism during the these years underplay the Civil Rights focus of African American students that preceded and paralleled the more salient Vietnam War protests. Less attention in…

Women and Children First: Report of the UNCED/UNICEF/UNFPA Symposium on the Impact of Poverty and Environmental Degradation on Women and Children (Geneva, Switzerland, May 27-30, 1991).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Conches (Switzerland).

The symposium examined the impact of poverty and environmental degradation on women and children and assessed women's real and potential contributions to sustainable development through their knowledge of natural resources. Participants included experts and resource people involved in grassroots activities throughout the world. This report…

National health care reform and the 103rd Congress: the activities and influence of public health advocates.

PubMed Central

Schauffler, H; Wilkerson, J

1997-01-01

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the activities and influence of public health interest groups and coalitions on the national health care reform debates in the 103rd Congress. METHODS: Congressional staff and representatives of public health interest groups, coalitions, and government health agencies were interviewed. Content analysis of eight leading national health care reform bills was performed. RESULTS: The public health community coalesced around public health in health care reform; nearly all the major interest groups and government health agencies joined two or more public health or prevention coalitions, and half joined three or more. The most effective influence on health care reform legislation was early, sustained personal contact with Congress members and their staffs, accompanied by succinct written materials summarizing key points. Media campaigns and grassroots mobilization were less effective. Seven of the eight leading health care reform bills included one or more of the priorities supported by public health advocates. CONCLUSIONS: The public health community played an important role in increasing awareness and support for public health programs in the health care reform bills of the 103rd Congress. PMID:9240098

Tobacco-prevention messages online: social marketing via the Web.

PubMed

Lin, Carolyn A; Hullman, Gwen A

2005-01-01

Antitobacco groups have joined millions of other commercial or noncommercial entities in developing a presence on the Web. These groups primarily represent the following different sponsorship categories: grassroots, medical, government, and corporate. To obtain a better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses in the message design of antitobacco Web sites, this project analyzed 100 antitobacco Web sites ranging across these four sponsorship categories. The results show that the tobacco industry sites posted just enough antismoking information to appease the antismoking publics. Medical organizations designed their Web sites as specialty sites and offered mostly scientific information. While the government sites resembled a clearinghouse for antitobacco related information, the grassroots sites represented the true advocacy outlets. In general, the industry sites provided the weakest persuasive messages and medical sites fared only slightly better. Government and grassroots sites rated most highly in presenting their antitobacco campaign messages on the Web.

Environmentalism: assessing the impact. [Review of organizations and activities

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McCaughey, J.

1979-08-02

It is estimated that there are probably about 50 environmentalist groups which can claim to have a national base and anywhere between 2,500 and 5,000 small, grassroots organizations. Overall membership of the Top 50 is estimated to be in the region of four million and those groups probably command an annual budget of about $100 million. Brief summaries are included here of the activities of several of the leading groups, namely: (1) Natural Resources Defense Council; (2) Environmental Defense Fund; (3) Wilderness Society; (4) Nature Conservancy; (5) National Wildlife Federation; (6) Sierra Club; and (7) Friends of the Earth. Inmore » the last hectic decade of growth, the environmentalist movement has undergone some far-reaching changes. As its grassroots base burgeoned, so did the movement's power, confidence and professionalism. Environmental litigation and lobbying have attracted some of the brightest graduates of law schools; an elaborate communications network has grown up that links tiny local groups and big national ones; and the focus of the movement's activities has taken a noticeable switch towards energy-related questions. One of the most frequent charges voiced against the movement, and admittedly valid criticism, is that of elitism and alienation from labor, minorities, and other sectors of the population. The 1976 amendment to the tax law-allowing groups to spend roughly 20% or up to $1 million of their revenues on lobbying activities-has had dramatic effects, throwing into the fray the wealthy and broadly based groups.« less

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hegna, Chris

The role of this DOE grant was to provide administrative and software support for the U. S. Burning Plasma Organization (USBPO). The USBPO is a grassroots organization of fusion plasma scientists that concentrates broadly on issues of interest in burning plasma physics in general with a particular emphasis on the needs of the ITER program. The particular role of this grant was to provide support of the communication needs of the USBPO primarily through the administration and maintenance of the USBPO server, the public USBPO website, e-mail lists and numerous members-only discussion forums and mail lists.

Final Report: The Influence of Novel Behavioral Strategies in Promoting the Diffusion of Solar Energy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gillingham, Kenneth; Bollinger, Bryan

This is the final report for a systematic, evidence-based project using an unprecedented series of large-scale field experiments to examine the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of novel approaches to reduce the soft costs of solar residential photovoltaics. The approaches were based around grassroots marketing campaigns called ‘Solarize’ campaigns, that were designed to lower costs and increase adoption of solar technology. This study quantified the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the Solarize programs and tested new approaches to further improve the model.

Family, maternal, and child health through photovoice.

PubMed

Wang, Caroline C; Pies, Cheri A

2004-06-01

(1) To introduce photovoice, a participatory action research methodology, for use by MCH program managers to enhance community health assessments and program planning efforts, (2) to enable community people to use the photovoice methodology as a tool to record, reflect, and communicate their family, maternal, and child health assets and concerns, and (3) to educate community leaders about family, maternal, and child health issues from a grassroots perspective. Photovoice is based upon the theoretical literature on education for critical consciousness, feminist theory, and community-based approaches to documentary photography. Picture This Photovoice project took place in Contra Costa, an economically and ethnically diverse county in the San Francisco Bay area. Sixty county residents of ages 13-50 participated in 3 sessions during which they received training from the local health department in the techniques and process of photovoice. Residents were provided with disposable cameras and were encouraged to take photographs reflecting their views on family, maternal, and child health assets and concerns in their community, and then participated in group discussions about their photographs. Community events were held to enable participants to educate MCH staff and community leaders. The photovoice project provided MCH staff with information to supplement existing quantitative perinatal data and contributed to an understanding of key MCH issues that participating community residents would like to see addressed. Participants' concerns centered on the need for safe places for children's recreation and for improvement in the broader community environment within county neighborhoods. Participants' definitions of family, maternal, and child health assets and concerns differed from those that MCH professionals may typically view as MCH issues (low birth weight, maternal mortality, teen pregnancy prevention), which helped MCH program staff to expand priorities and include residents' foremost concerns. MCH professionals can apply photovoice as an innovative participatory research methodology to engage community members in needs assessment, asset mapping, and program planning, and in reaching policy makers to advocate strategies promoting family, maternal, and child health as informed from a grassroots perspective.

Evaluation of the Coaches Educators training implementation of the PAPA project: A comparison between Norway and France.

PubMed

Van Hoye, A; Larsen, T; Sovik, M; Wold, B; Heuzé, J-P; Samdal, O; Ommundsen, Y; Sarrazin, P

2015-10-01

This study cross-culturally compares the implementation process of the Empowering Coaching™ training program to grassroots coaches (GCs) by trained Coach Educators (CEs) from the Promoting Adolescent Physical Activity project in Norway and France. This program targets children's health through coach training to create a more positive environment. Using the RE-AIM framework, indicators of implementation processes at staff level were defined for adoption, implementation, and maintenance. CEs (n = 18) were interviewed about their professional use of the training, and video-filmed delivering the intervention trial workshops. GCs (n = 185) responded to a questionnaire after the workshops. Results showed that CEs were keen to participate in this project (16/18; 89%), to stay involved (12/16; 75%), and to diffuse the principles after the research project (12/12; 100%). CE training seemed effective as results indicated that CEs applied the principles of the program during the workshops and covered a high degree of the content (78%). Cross-cultural differences were found as the French Football Federation CE dropped out of the program, as Norwegian CEs delivered the content with higher fidelity and had higher enjoyment and pace scores than French CEs. More indicators are needed to use the RE-AIM framework for cross-cultural comparison. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The NASA Technical Report Server

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, M. L.; Gottlich, G. L.; Bianco, D. J.; Paulson, S. S.; Binkley, R. L.; Kellogg, Y. D.; Beaumont, C. J.; Schmunk, R. B.; Kurtz, M. J.; Accomazzi, A.; Syed, O.

The National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 established the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and charged it to "provide for the widest practicable and appropriate dissemination of information concerning...its activities and the results thereof". The search for innovative methods to distribute NASA's information led a grass-roots team to create the NASA Technical Report Server (NTRS), which uses the World Wide Web and other popular Internet-based information systems .

Community partnerships in preventing childhood lead poisoning

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dugbatey, K.; Evans, R.G.; Lienhop, M.T.

1995-11-01

Childhood lead poisoning is an environmental health problem that has no socio-economic, racial/ethnic, or regional boundaries. Because the key element in the exposure pathway is lead-based paint, it is more likely to impact inner city urban populations than those living in suburban areas. Suburban development primarily occurred after lead was removed from lead-based paint. It is maximally effective to adopt strategies that promote grassroots community development in designing preventive interventions. This paper reviews such a strategy for building community partnerships that have been instrumental in the development and implementation of an innovative lead education program. Saint Louis University School ofmore » Public Health reaches out to private and public nonprofit community organizations in this community-based lead education program.« less

Linking at-risk South African girls to sexual violence and reproductive health services: A mixed-methods assessment of a soccer-based HIV prevention program and pilot SMS campaign.

PubMed

Merrill, Katherine G; Merrill, Jamison C; Hershow, Rebecca B; Barkley, Chris; Rakosa, Boitumelo; DeCelles, Jeff; Harrison, Abigail

2018-04-30

Grassroot Soccer developed SKILLZ Street-a soccer-based life skills program with a supplementary SMS platform-to support adolescent girls at risk for HIV, violence, and sexual and reproductive health challenges. We conducted a mixed-methods assessment of preliminary outcomes and implementation processes in three primary schools in Soweto, South Africa, from August to December 2013. Quantitative methods included participant attendance and SMS platform usage tracking, pre/post questionnaires, and structured observation. Qualitative data were collected from program participants, parents, teachers, and a social worker during 6 focus group discussions and 4 in-depth interviews. Of 394 participants enrolled, 97% (n = 382) graduated, and 217 unique users accessed the SMS platform. Questionnaires completed by 213 participants (mean age: 11.9, SD: 3.02 years) alongside qualitative findings showed modest improvements in participants' perceptions of power in relationships and gender equity, self-esteem, self-efficacy to avoid unwanted sex, communication with others about HIV and sex, and HIV-related knowledge and stigma. The coach-participant relationship, safe space, and integration of soccer were raised as key intervention components. Implementation challenges were faced around delivery of soccer-based activities. Findings highlight the relevance and importance of programs like SKILLZ Street in addressing challenges facing adolescent girls in South African townships. Recommendations for future programs are provided. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The U.N. Population Fund: Background and the U.S. Funding Debate

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-09-20

the education of women and girls, to end gender discrimination and violence against women, and to strengthen women’s grassroots activist...5 Obstetric fistula occurs from prolonged child labor, particularly when labor lasts two days or more. When a woman or girl is unable to push her baby...more information on UNFPA activities regarding fistula, see CRS Report RS21773, Reproductive Health Problems in the World: Obstetric Fistula

A new family programme in Zhejiang province.

PubMed

Xu, B

1994-04-01

Zhejiang Province in China has promoted a new family planning program since April 1993. The program stresses delayed marriage and childbearing, fewer and healthier births, modernization of family life, and prosperity through hard work. The people are receptive to the new program out of a desire for an improved standard of living. The objective is to build small, modern families who 1) practice deferred marriage and childbearing; 2) voluntarily practice family planning and have no unplanned births; 3) practice avoidance of consanguineous marriage, become sterilized if a carrier of a hereditary disease of chromosomal abnormality, and use premarital education and counseling and proper prenatal care; 4) uphold the laws and maintain discipline in action to avoid criminal behavior; 5) establish families that respect the old, care for children, and help their neighbors; 6) complete 9 years of compulsory education; and 7) create well being through hard work. The program is compatible with the strategy of the "three stresses" and an integrated approach. IEC and service provision are important components in program implementation. The target population are the masses and grassroots cadres, particularly those in the childbearing ages. IEC will be directed in different ways to different groups. Those aged 18-35 years will receive education. Face to face interaction with family planning workers and lectures will be directed to grassroots cadres. The mass media will be employed to reach the masses. The messages will include information and persuasion to adopt new families, accept family planning regulations, and learn about contraceptive use, healthy births and childrearing, education, health care, sex education, and income generation skills. Classes will be conducted for groups, such as teenagers, unmarried youth, pregnant women, and lactating women. Priority will be given to couples that accept the certificates for one child; favoritism will be granted for allocation of housing; acceptance in kindergartens and schools, employment, and military positions; and receipt of business licenses and poverty aide. Sterilization will be rewarded with longer paid leave and subsidies. Services will include contraceptive provision and follow-up, infertility treatment, gynecological check-ups, sex education, old age pensions, premarital counseling, and other quality services.

Exposure of Seventh and Eighth Grade Urban Youth to Dentistry and Oral Health Careers.

PubMed

Mayberry, Melanie E; Young, Deirdre D; Sawilowsky, Shlomo; Hoelscher, Diane

2018-01-01

While pipeline programs for students from underrepresented minority groups have been established at the high school and college levels, fewer programs have been developed for middle school students. In an effort to reach this cohort, the University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry embarked on a grassroots collaborative pipeline program with two distinct segments: Urban Impressions and Dental Imprint. Their purpose is to expose Detroit-area seventh and eighth grade students to careers in dentistry, provide oral health education, and introduce role models. The aim of this pilot study was to determine outcomes for the middle school participants in Urban Impressions (n=86) and Dental Imprint (n=68). Both segments featured hands-on dental activities at the dental school. Outcomes were assessed by pretest-posttest surveys. Across the three cohorts, a total of 86 students participated in one or more sessions, with 57 completing the pre- and post-program surveys, for a 66% response rate. The results showed that the Dental Imprint respondents' knowledge of oral health, dental admissions, and specialties increased by an average 26% over three years. The gain in knowledge for each cohort was statistically significant (p<0.001). Overall, 91% of Urban Impressions and 95% of Dental Imprint respondents were positive about the value of the program. Thirty-one of 57 Urban Impressions respondents indicated interest in dentistry as a career following the program. These results suggest that the two segments of this program are meeting their goals of increasing middle grade students' awareness of oral health professions including dentistry and providing access to role models. Institutions may benefit from the description of strategies used by this program to address challenges related to establishing early pipeline programs.

Mobilizing women for minority health and social justice in california.

PubMed

Littlefield, Diane; Robison, Connie Chan; Engelbrecht, Luz; González, Belma; Hutcheson, Heather

2002-04-01

Women's Health Leadership is building the leadership capacity of diverse community leaders in California committed to promoting health and social justice in their communities. This program provides opportunities for cross-cultural exchanges of ideas, resources, and expertise. Graduates continue to receive technical support and to engage in peer learning via an alumnae network. The network is dedicated to advancing social justice issues and to addressing health disparities. It is also a way to mobilize trained grassroots leaders to provide expertise to influence policy decisions, to provide technical support and resources to local communities, and to foster new partnerships across the state.

EarthScope National Office Education and Outreach Program: 2013 Update on Activities and Outcomes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Semken, S. C.; Robinson, S.; Bohon, W.; Schwab, P.; Arrowsmith, R.; Garnero, E. J.; Fouch, M. J.; Pettis, L.; Baumback, D.; Dick, C.

2013-12-01

The EarthScope Program (www.earthscope.org) funded by the National Science Foundation, fosters interdisciplinary exploration of the geologic structure and evolution of the North American continent by means of seismology, geodesy, magnetotellurics, in-situ fault-zone sampling, geochronology, and high-resolution topographic measurements. Data and findings from EarthScope continue to transform geoscientific studies throughout the Earth, enhance understanding and mitigation of hazards, and inform applications of geoscience toward environmental sustainability. The EarthScope Program also marshals significant resources and opportunities for education and outreach (E&O) in the Earth system sciences. The EarthScope National Office (ESNO) at Arizona State University serves all EarthScope stakeholders, including the EarthScope Steering Committee, researchers, educators, students, and the general public. ESNO supports and promotes E&O through social media and web-hosted resources, newsletters and published articles, E&O workshops for informal educators (interpreters), assistance to grassroots K-12 STEM teacher professional development projects (typically led by EarthScope researchers), continuing education for researchers, collaborations with other Earth-science E&O providers, and biannual national conferences. The EarthScope E&O program at ESNO leads and supports wide dissemination of the data, findings, and legacy of EarthScope. Notable activities in 2013 include expansion of social-media and web-based content, two Interpretive Workshops in the eastern United States, the Great ShakeOut, the EarthScope National Meeting in Raleigh, and continuing partnerships with affiliated E&O providers. The EarthScope National Office is supported by the National Science Foundation under grants EAR-1101100 and EAR-1216301. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

Opening minds in Canada: background and rationale.

PubMed

Stuart, Heather; Chen, Shu-Ping; Christie, Romie; Dobson, Keith; Kirsh, Bonnie; Knaak, Stephanie; Koller, Michelle; Krupa, Terry; Lauria-Horner, Bianca; Luong, Dorothy; Modgill, Geeta; Patten, Scott B; Pietrus, Mike; Szeto, Andrew; Whitley, Rob

2014-10-01

To summarize the background and rationale of the approach taken by the Mental Health Commission of Canada's Opening Minds (OM) Anti-Stigma Initiative. The approach taken by OM incorporates a grassroots, community development philosophy, has clearly defined target groups, uses contact-based education as the central organizing element across interventions, and has a strong evaluative component, so that best practices can be identified, replicated, and disseminated. Contact-based education occurs when people who have experienced a mental illness share their personal story of recovery and hope. OM has acted as a catalyst to develop partnerships between community groups who are undertaking anti-stigma work and an interdisciplinary team of academic researchers in 5 universities who are evaluating the results of these programs. Building partnerships with existing community programs and promoting systematic evaluation using standardized approaches and instruments have contributed to our understanding of best practices in the field of anti-stigma programming.

JICA -- working from the grass roots up. Vietnam.

PubMed

1997-11-01

The fact that Japan has reduced its foreign aid by 10% for fiscal 1998 will require the Japan International Cooperation Agency's (JICA) Medical Cooperation Department (MCD) to review both the number of projects it funds and program management. The MCD is developing new guidelines for primary health care programs that will reflect the principles embedded in the Program of Action of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development. The managing director of the MCD believes that an effective way to promote primary health care is to focus on reproductive health/family planning and then broaden the scope of activities. The current reproductive health project being implemented in Nghe An Province of Viet Nam is expected to make a great contribution to the improvement of community health. The MCD also wants to explore bottom-up primary health care approaches with the cooperation of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Thus, the Viet Nam project is being conducted in collaboration with the NGO JOICFP and may pioneer new avenues in governmental/NGO cooperation worldwide. The new budget cuts will force JICA to review its disbursement and project management procedures. Thus, all future projects will use the project cycle management approach, including the use of a participatory project design matrix. JICA will also be fostering a sense of ownership of projects from the grassroots to the national level that will allow projects to become sustainable.

Stratification of women's sport in contemporary China.

PubMed

Xiong, Huan

2011-01-01

Since economic reform in the 1980s, Chinese sport has undergone an extraordinary transformation. The most distinguishing phenomenon is the rapid growth of mass sport at the grassroots level with increasing demands for physical activities in women's daily lives. The rapid growth of women's sports participation at the grassroots is deeply embedded in the process of social stratification as a result of the urbanisation of Chinese society. The purpose of this paper is to use the socialist, feminist and theoretical framework to explore how Chinese women's different economic, educational, domestic and cultural situations shape their sports values and patterns of participation, marking social boundaries in Chinese urban communities. Semi-structured interviews and observations were conducted with 60 female physical exercisers in sports clubs, parks and neighbourhood playgrounds. Documentary research was also applied as a complement method to the interview. The findings indicate that within different classes (middle class, working class and a group who were unemployed), many different opportunities for and limitations on women to participate in sport are noticed. Chinese women have not fully and equally utilised sports opportunities created by urbanisation. Most Chinese women still live within patriarchal arrangements. Consequently, they do not completely fulfil their ambitions in sport.

A Grassroots Community Dialogue on the Ethics of the Care of People with Autism and Their Families: The Stony Brook Guidelines.

PubMed

Post, Stephen G; Pomeroy, John; Keirns, Carla; Cover, Virginia Isaacs; Dorn, Michael Leverett

2017-06-01

The increased recognition and reported prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) combined with the associated societal and clinical impact call for a broad grassroots community-based dialogue on treatment related ethical and social issues. In these Stony Brook Guidelines, which were developed during a full year of community dialogue (2010-2011) with affected individuals, families, and professionals in the field, we identify and discuss topics of paramount concern to the ASD constituency: treatment goals and happiness, distributive justice, managing the desperate hopes for a cure, sibling responsibilities, intimacy and sex, diagnostic ethics, and research ethics. The members of the dialogue core committee included doctors, ethicists, administrators, social workers, ministers, disability experts, and many family members of individuals with autism who were especially engaged in community activities on behalf of their constituency, including siblings, parents, and grandparents. Our guidelines are not based on "top-down" imposition of professional expertise, but rather on a "bottom-up" grass roots attention to the voices of affected individuals and families speaking from experience. These guidelines can inform clinical practice, but they also are meaningful for the wider social conversation emerging over the treatment of individuals with ASD.

MS PHD'S: Effective Pathways to Mentoring for Increasing Diversity in the Geoscience Workforce - What have we done? What can we still do?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ricciardi, L.; Johnson, A.; Williamson Whitney, V.; Ithier-Guzman, W.; Johnson, A.; Braxton, L.

2011-12-01

In 2003 a young, African-American geoscientist and professor discovered significant gaps in the recruitment and retention of minority students within the post-secondary educational community and a subsequent correlation of underrepresentation within the geosciences workforce. From this research, a unique concept was born: The Minorities Striving and Pursuing Higher Degrees of Success in Earth System Science Professional Development Program (MS PHD'S PDP). This program was founded upon a vision that minorities can and should play a role in facilitating a network to attract, retain and increase minority representation in the geosciences workforce. In 2003, the pilot MS PHD'S program focused on a simple grass roots concept of effective mentoring and professional development administered by and for minorities through professional development activities. Today the program has grown to an impressive number of alumni who, in addition to establishing careers in the ESS professional workforce, also return to mentor the next generation of upcoming minority geoscientists. Alumni, mentors and current participants not only experience what has grown into a three-phase program but also enjoy enhanced benefits of ongoing interaction through social media, list-servs and webinars. While keeping its feet firmly planted in its grass-roots philosophy of effective mentoring and professional development by and for minorities, the MS PHD'S program looks to the future, by asking the question, "What can we do next to ensure the future of maintaining and growing diverse representation in the geosciences workforce?" Looking ahead, future goals for the program include increasing its pilot representation motto of "by and for minorities", exploring new technologies and digital tools, and expanding its supportive network of distinguished academicians, scientific organizations, industry partners, alumni, peers, and representatives of non-science disciplines.

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER TO U.S. INDEPENDENT OIL AND NATURAL GAS PRODUCERS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Unknown

2000-11-01

The Petroleum Technology Transfer Council (PTTC) continued pursuing its mission of helping U.S. independent oil and gas producers make timely, informed technology decisions during Fiscal Year 2000 (FY00). Functioning as a cohesive national organization, PTTC has active grassroots programs through its ten Regional Lead Organizations (RLOs) who bring research and academia to the table via their association with geological surveys and engineering departments. The regional directors connect with independent oil and gas producers through technology workshops, resource centers, websites, newsletters, various technical publications and other outreach efforts. These are guided by regional Producer Advisory Groups (PAGs), who are area operatorsmore » and service companies working with the Regional Lead Organizations. The role of the national headquarters (HQ) staff includes planning and managing the PTTC program, conducting nation-wide technology transfer activities, and implementing a comprehensive communications effort. The organization effectively combines federal, state, and industry funding to achieve important goals for all of these sectors. This integrated funding base, combined with industry volunteers guiding PTTC's activities and the dedication of national and regional staff, are achieving notable results. PTTC is increasingly recognized as a critical resource for information and access to technologies, especially for smaller companies. This technical progress report summarizes PTTC's accomplishments during FY00, which lays the groundwork for further growth in the future. At a time of many industry changes and market movements, the organization has built a reputation and expectation to address industry needs of getting information distributed quickly which can impact the bottom line immediately.« less

TARGETED TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER TO US INDEPENDENTS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Donald F. Duttlinger; E. Lance Cole

2005-01-01

The Petroleum Technology Transfer Council (PTTC) continued pursuing its mission of assisting U.S. independent oil and gas producers with timely, informed technology decisions during Fiscal Year 2004 (FY04). PTTC has active grassroots programs through its 10 Regional Lead Organizations (RLOs) and 2 satellite offices. They bring research and academia to the table via their association with geological surveys and engineering departments. The regional directors interact with independent oil and gas producers through technology workshops, resource centers, websites, newsletters, technical publications and other cooperative outreach efforts. PTTC's Headquarters (HQ) staff receives direction from a National Board of Directors predominantly comprised ofmore » American natural gas and oil producers to plan and manage the overall technology transfer program. PTTC HQ implements a comprehensive communications program by interconnecting the talents of the National Board, 10 Regional Producer Advisory Groups (PAG) and the RLOs with industry across the U.S. PTTC effectively combines federal funding through the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy, namely the Strategic Center for Natural Gas and Oil with state and industry contributions to share application of upstream technologies. Ultimately, these efforts factor in to provide a safe, secure and reliable energy supply for American consumers. This integrated resource base, combined with industry volunteers guiding PTTC's activities and the dedication of national and regional staff, are achieving notable results regarding domestic production figures. PTTC is increasingly recognized as a critical resource for information and access to technologies by providing direct contact with research, development and demonstration (RD&D) results. A key to the program is demonstrating proven technologies that can be applied broadly and rapidly. This technical progress report summarizes PTTC's accomplishments during FY04. Activities remained at high levels. Board and staff interaction has defined strategic thrusts to further outreach. Networking, involvement in technical activities and an active exhibit schedule are increasing PTTC's sphere of influence with both producers and the service sector. PTTC's reputation for unbiased bottom line information stimulates cooperative ventures with other organizations. Efforts to build the contact database and a growing E-mail Technology Alert service are expanding PTTC's audience.« less

Assessing opinions in community leadership networks to address health inequalities: a case study from Project IMPACT.

PubMed

McCauley, M P; Ramanadhan, S; Viswanath, K

2015-12-01

This study demonstrates a novel approach that those engaged in promoting social change in health can use to analyze community power, mobilize it and enhance community capacity to reduce health inequalities. We used community reconnaissance methods to select and interview 33 participants from six leadership sectors in 'Milltown', the New England city where the study was conducted. We used UCINET network analysis software to assess the structure of local leadership and NVivo qualitative software to analyze leaders' views on public health and health inequalities. Our main analyses showed that community power is distributed unequally in Milltown, with our network of 33 divided into an older, largely male and more powerful group, and a younger, largely female group with many 'grassroots' sector leaders who focus on reducing health inequalities. Ancillary network analyses showed that grassroots leaders comprise a self-referential cluster that could benefit from greater affiliation with leaders from other sectors and identified leaders who may serve as leverage points in our overall program of public agenda change to address health inequalities. Our innovative approach provides public health practitioners with a method for assessing community leaders' views, understanding subgroup divides and mobilizing leaders who may be helpful in reducing health inequalities. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

The Three-Pronged Approach to Community Education: An Ongoing Hydrologic Science Outreach Campaign Directed from a University Research Center

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gallagher, L.; Morse, M.; Maxwell, R. M.

2017-12-01

The Integrated GroundWater Modeling Center (IGWMC) at Colorado School of Mines has, over the past three years, developed a community outreach program focusing on hydrologic science education, targeting K-12 teachers and students, and providing experiential learning for undergraduate and graduate students. During this time, the programs led by the IGWMC reached approximately 7500 students, teachers, and community members along the Colorado Front Range. An educational campaign of this magnitude for a small (2 full-time employees, 4 PIs) research center required restructuring and modularizing of the outreach strategy. We refined our approach to include three main "modules" of delivery. First: grassroots education delivery in the form of K-12 classroom visits, science fairs, and teacher workshops. Second: content development in the form of lesson plans for K-12 classrooms and STEM camps, hands-on physical and computer model activities, and long-term citizen science partnerships. Lastly: providing education/outreach experiences for undergraduate and graduate student volunteers, training them via a 3-credit honors course, and instilling the importance of effective science communication skills. Here we present specific case studies and examples of the successes and failures of our three-pronged system, future developments, and suggestions for entities newly embarking on an earth science education outreach campaign.

Community-based advocacy training: applying asset-based community development in resident education.

PubMed

Hufford, Laura; West, Daniel C; Paterniti, Debora A; Pan, Richard J

2009-06-01

Communities and Physicians Together (CPT) at University of California, Davis Health System provides a novel approach to teaching residents to be effective community advocates. Founded in 1999, CPT is a partnership between a pediatric residency program, five community collaboratives located in diverse neighborhoods, and a grassroots child advocacy organization. Using the principles of Asset-Based Community Development, the program emphasizes establishing partnerships with community members and organizations to improve child health and identifies community assets and building capacity. Community members function as the primary faculty for CPT.The authors describe the CPT curriculum, which teaches residents to build partnerships with their assigned community. Residents have three, two-week blocks each year for CPT activities and maintain a longitudinal relationship with their community. In the first year, collaborative coordinators from each community orient residents to their community. Residents identify community assets and perform activities designed to provide them with a community member's perspective. In the second and third years, residents partner with community members and organizations to implement a project to improve the health of children in that community. CPT also provides faculty development to community partners including a workshop on medical culture and resident life. A qualitative evaluation demonstrated residents' attitudes of their role as pediatricians in the community changed with CPT.CPT is unique because it provides a model of service learning that emphasizes identifying and utilizing strengths and building capacity. This approach differs from the traditional medical model, which emphasizes deficits and needs.

Hybrids do it better: Lessons from websites of hybrid organizations in modern health movements.

PubMed

Striley, Katie Margavio; Field-Springer, Kimberly

2016-01-01

Hybrid organizations in modern health movements adopt multiple organizational logistics, allowing them to more effectively achieve social change. We conducted an analysis of 152 probreastfeeding organization websites categorized as institutionalized organizations, grassroots organizations, or hybrid organizations. Through a series of ANOVA analyses, we found that hybrid's websites provide significantly more useful health care information, better maintained dialogue with members, more efficiently mobilized members, commoditized health care issues less, and created member identity while maintaining institutional ties. Ultimately, hybrids tended to incorporate the positive elements from both grassroots and institutional organizations, while rejecting many of the negative elements.

Studying the teaching of kindness: A conceptual model for evaluating kindness education programs in schools.

PubMed

Kaplan, Deanna M; deBlois, Madeleine; Dominguez, Violeta; Walsh, Michele E

2016-10-01

Recent research suggests that school-based kindness education programs may benefit the learning and social-emotional development of youth and may improve school climate and school safety outcomes. However, how and to what extent kindness education programming influences positive outcomes in schools is poorly understood, and such programs are difficult to evaluate in the absence of a conceptual model for studying their effectiveness. In partnership with Kind Campus, a widely adopted school-based kindness education program that uses a bottom-up program framework, a methodology called concept mapping was used to develop a conceptual model for evaluating school-based kindness education programs from the input of 123 middle school students and approximately 150 educators, school professionals, and academic scholars. From the basis of this model, recommendations for processes and outcomes that would be useful to assess in evaluations of kindness education programs are made, and areas where additional instrument development may be necessary are highlighted. The utility of the concept mapping method as an initial step in evaluating other grassroots or non-traditional educational programming is also discussed. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The crucial role of the private sector.

PubMed

Barberis, M; Paxman, J M

1986-12-01

Private support for the development of family planning programs continues to grow and now includes industries that provide family planning services, commercial outlets that distribute contraceptives, community groups that help to build demand, private medical practitioners who include contraception as a part of health care, organizations that provide technical and financial assistance to developing country programs, pharmaceutical firms, and foundations that underwrite contraceptive research. Although the mix of private and public programs differs from country to country, these 2 family planning programs complement each other and often work in close partnership. The private sector has the advantages of being able to pioneer innovative programs the public sector is unwilling or unable to pursue, to bring foreign financial and technical assistance to developing countries without political implications, and to achieve financially self-sustaining family planning efforts that are linked to other development efforts. In many countries, the private sector has been instrumental in developing a national family planning program and in eliminating barriers to family planning in countries with restrictive laws and policies. The private sector has been especially important in pioneering grassroots programs that improve the status of women through education, health care, training, and economic opportunity.

Reimagining NEPA: choices for environmentalists

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pollack, S.

1985-01-01

Five years after the end of the environmental decade the movement has split into those whose strategy is to enhance opportunities for grassroots organizing and those whose strategy is to increase internal expertise. The positions of the technocratic and grassroots proponents over the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) show that one sees NEPA as a way to empower a new class of professionals, while the other uses NEPA to elevate the importance of citizen's participation in decision making. A third, or deep ecology, perspective criticizes both approaches and treats environmental degradation as a symptom of deeper societal problems, solvable onlymore » by massive changes in current values and institutions.« less

All hazardous waste politics is local: Grass-roots advocacy and public participation in siting and cleanup decisions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lowry, R.C.

1998-12-31

The combined effects of federalism and interest group pluralism pose particularly difficult problems for hazardous waste siting and cleanup decisions. Most national environmental groups have only limited involvement in local hazardous waste politics, while local grass-roots advocates have very different interests and sometimes are pitted against one another. Both the Environmental protection Agency and the Department of energy recently have begun to use site-specific citizen advisory boards at cleanup sites. This approach appears to improve communications at some sites, but does not address the issues of ``not in my back yard`` politics and alleged inequitable exposure to hazardous wastes.

The paradoxes and promise of community coalitions.

PubMed

Chavis, D M

2001-04-01

Community coalitions, as they are currently applied, are unique organizations whose ability to promote community change is different from other types of community organizations. This article explores those differences and elaborates how community coalitions can use those differences to transform conflict into greater capacity, equity, and justice. Concerns are also raised in this article about how community coalitions can intentionally and unintentionally protect the status quo and contain the empowerment of grassroots leadership and those of marginalized groups. There is a need for more theory, research, and discourse on how community coalitions can transform conflict into social change and how they can increase the power of grassroots and other citizen-lead organizations.

Disaster response and grassroots environmental advocacy: the example of the World Trade Center Community Labor Coalition.

PubMed

Newman, David M

2008-01-01

The tragic events of 9/11/01 and thereafter produced the worst environmental disaster in the history of New York City. Exposure to World Trade Center-derived toxic contaminants at Ground Zero and throughout Lower Manhattan has produced clinically diagnosed persistent respiratory and other illnesses in multiple exposure populations, with fatalities beginning to be reported. Government efforts to protect public health and to assess and remediate contaminants have been minimal. In response, a broad and sophisticated grassroots environmental movement has arisen in Lower Manhattan to push for environmental cleanup and for access to health care for impacted populations and communities. This movement unites community, labor, and environmental groups and continues to organize five years after 9/11. This article examines the development of grassroots response efforts, the work of the World Trade Center Community Labor Coalition, and obstacles encountered in coalition-building. Testimony of community and labor activists is provided in the appendix. The context for this article is provided by the companion article that precedes it in this issue of New Solutions. The preceding article examines the scope of the environmental disaster, the statutory requirements that regulate governmental response, and the nature of government response efforts.

The Asian American Hepatitis B Program: Building a Coalition to Address Hepatitis B Health Disparities

PubMed Central

Trinh-Shevrin, Chau; Pollack, Henry J.; Tsang, Thomas; Park, Jihyun; Ramos, Mary Ruchel; Islam, Nadia; Wang, Su; Chun, Kay; Sim, Shao-Chee; Pong, Perry; Rey, Mariano Jose; Kwon, Simona C.

2012-01-01

Background Community coalitions are increasingly recognized as important strategies for addressing health disparities. By providing the opportunity to pool resources, they provide a means to develop and sustain innovative approaches to affect community health. Objectives This article describes the challenges and lessons learned in building the Asian American Hepatitis B Program (AAHBP) coalition to conduct a community-based participatory research (CBPR) initiative to address hepatitis B (HBV) among New York City Asian-American communities. Methods Using the stages of coalition development as a framework, a comprehensive assessment of the process of developing and implementing the AAHBP coalition is presented. Lessons Learned Findings highlight the importance of developing a sound infrastructure and set of processes to foster a greater sense of ownership, shared vision, and investment in the program. Conclusion Grassroots community organizing and campus–community partnerships can be successfully leveraged to address and prevent a significant health disparity in an underserved and diverse community. PMID:22080774

The role of public health advocacy in achieving an outright ban on commercial tanning beds in Australia.

PubMed

Sinclair, Craig A; Makin, Jennifer Kay; Tang, Anita; Brozek, Irena; Rock, Vanessa

2014-02-01

Although many countries still face opposition to the legislation of artificial tanning beds, all Australian states and territories have announced a total ban on commercial tanning beds. A combination of epidemiological and policy-centered research, powerful personal stories, and the active advocacy of prominent academics, cancer organizations, and grassroots community campaigners contributed to the decisions to first legislate standards and then ban all commercial tanning beds. We have illustrated that incremental change can be an effective pathway to securing substantial public health reforms.

Protest and survive, the U.K. Construction Safety Campaign: a case study of workers' and victims' family action and legal and regulatory inaction on construction health and safety.

PubMed

Holder, Mick; O'Brien, Tony

2007-01-01

The U.K. Construction Safety Campaign, based on grass-roots rank-and-file trade union activity, has both a domestic agenda and a wider sphere with regard to international developments. Using organized protests and media exposure to achieve its ends, the Campaign has contributed substantially to reducing injuries and fatalities in the U.K. construction industry, as well as achieving some justice for victims of the industry's neglect of safe management practices.

The Role of Public Health Advocacy in Achieving an Outright Ban on Commercial Tanning Beds in Australia

PubMed Central

Sinclair, Craig A.; Tang, Anita; Brozek, Irena; Rock, Vanessa

2014-01-01

Although many countries still face opposition to the legislation of artificial tanning beds, all Australian states and territories have announced a total ban on commercial tanning beds. A combination of epidemiological and policy-centered research, powerful personal stories, and the active advocacy of prominent academics, cancer organizations, and grassroots community campaigners contributed to the decisions to first legislate standards and then ban all commercial tanning beds. We have illustrated that incremental change can be an effective pathway to securing substantial public health reforms. PMID:24328651

Community capacity as an "inside job": evolution of perceived ownership within a university-aboriginal community partnership.

PubMed

Cargo, Margaret D; Delormier, Treena; Lévesque, Lucie; McComber, Alex M; Macaulay, Ann C

2011-01-01

PURPOSE. To assess the evolution of perceived ownership of a university-Aboriginal community partnership across three project stages. DESIGN. Survey administration to project partners during project formalization (1996-T1), mobilization (1999-T2), and maintenance (2004-T3). SETTING. Aboriginal community of Kahnawake, outside Montreal, Quebec, Canada. PARTICIPANTS. Partners involved in influencing decision making in the Kahnawake Schools Diabetes Prevention Project (KSDPP). MEASURE AND ANALYSIS . A measure of perceived primary ownership subjected to linear trend analysis. RESULTS. KSDPP staff were perceived as primary owner at T1 and shared ownership with Community Advisory Board (CAB) members at T2 and T3. Trend tests indicated greater perceived ownership between T1 and T3 for CAB (χ(2)(1)  =  12.3, p < .0001) and declining KSDPP staff (χ(2)(1)  =  10.5, p < .001) ownership over time. Academic partners were never perceived as primary owners. CONCLUSION. This project was community driven from the beginning. It was not dependent on an external academic change agent to activate the community and develop the community's capacity to plan and implement a solution. It still took several years for the grassroots CAB to take responsibility from KSDPP staff, thus indicating the need for sustained funding to build grassroots community capacity.

Bangladesh mission sees great benefits.

PubMed

1998-10-01

A JOICFP 2-member mission visited Bangladesh during August 9-22 to monitor the progress of cooperative projects in Narsingdhi and Feni districts, implemented by the Family Planning Association of Bangladesh (FPAB), and to discuss the implementation of Postal Savings for International Voluntary Aid (POSIVA) funds. POSIVA is in its 4th year of providing funds to Bangladesh. The Population Reference Bureau's (PRB) Japan Representative joined the mission on a study tour during August 9-17 to directly observe reproductive health and family planning, women's empowerment, and micro-credit at the grassroots level. The representative hopes to raise the Japanese public's awareness of international nongovernmental organization (NGO) partnerships in order to encourage them to help rural populations in developing countries. The offices of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the International Secretariat of Partners in Population and Development, UNFPA, Population Council, OECF, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and the Grammin Bank were visited, as well as the project areas of Panchdona and Dhalia Unions of the Integrated Family Development Project. ODA assistance should be strengthened to improve grassroots activities, with a focus upon women's empowerment, maternal and child health, and alleviating poverty through NGOs working together with communities. A project to build capacity in reproductive health in Jessore District is described.

Native Transformations in the Pacific Northwest: A strength-based model of protection against substance use disorder.

PubMed

Rasmus, Stacy; Allen, James; Connor, William; Freeman, William; Skewes, Monica

2016-01-01

This paper presents findings from the Native Transformations Project, an exploratory community-based participatory research study that aims to identify sources of strength and protection against substance use disorder in three tribal communities in the coastal Pacific Northwest. Preliminary results from the study describe the specific settings, acts, and behaviors that build strengths and provide protection at the family, community, individual, and spiritual levels within coastal Pacific Northwest local tribal cultures. Findings from this study give voice to stated community preferences for grassroots Native intervention programs based in local cultural knowledge, worldviews, values, and theories of change, that operate at the local level on their own terms.

NATIVE TRANSFORMATIONS IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST: A STRENGTH-BASED MODEL OF PROTECTION AGAINST SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER

PubMed Central

Rasmus, Stacy; Allen, James; Connor, William; Freeman, William; Skewes, Monica

2016-01-01

This paper presents findings from the Native Transformations Project, an exploratory community-based participatory research study that aims to identify sources of strength and protection against substance use disorder in three tribal communities in the coastal Pacific Northwest. Preliminary results from the study describe the specific settings, acts, and behaviors that build strengths and provide protection at the family, community, individual, and spiritual levels within coastal Pacific Northwest local tribal cultures. Findings from this study give voice to stated community preferences for grassroots Native intervention programs based in local cultural knowledge, worldviews, values, and theories of change, that operate at the local level on their own terms. PMID:27383091

Outreach Strategies to Recruit Low-Income African American Men to Participate in Health Promotion Programs and Research: Lessons From the Men of Color Health Awareness (MOCHA) Project.

PubMed

Graham, Louis F; Scott, Lamont; Lopeyok, Erus; Douglas, Henry; Gubrium, Aline; Buchanan, David

2018-04-01

African American men continue to bear a disproportionate share of the burden of disease. Engaging these men in health research and health promotion programs-especially lower-income, African American men who are vulnerable to chronic disease conditions such as obesity and heart disease-has historically proven quite difficult for researchers and public health practitioners. The few effective outreach strategies identified in the literature to date are largely limited to recruiting through hospital clinics, churches, and barbershops. The Men of Color Health Awareness (MOCHA) project is a grassroots, community-driven initiative that has developed a number of innovative outreach strategies. After describing these strategies, we present data on the demographic and health characteristics of the population reached using these methods, which indicate that MOCHA has been highly effective in reaching this population of men.

Earthscope National Office Education and Outreach Program: 2014 Update on Broader-Impacts Activities and Outcomes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Semken, S. C.; Robinson, S.; Bohon, W.; Schwab, P.; Arrowsmith, R.; Garnero, E.; Pettis, L.; Baumback, D.; Dick, C.

2014-12-01

The EarthScope Program (www.earthscope.org), funded by the National Science Foundation, fosters interdisciplinary exploration of the geologic structure and evolution of the North American continent by means of geodesy, seismology, magnetotellurics, in-situ fault-zone sampling, geochronology, and high-resolution topographic measurements. EarthScope data, and the scientific findings they underpin, continue to revolutionize geoscientific research, enhance understanding and mitigation of geologic hazards, and bolster applications of geoscience in environmental management and sustainability. The EarthScope Program also produces and shares a wide range of resources and opportunities for education and outreach (E&O) in the Earth system sciences. The EarthScope National Office (ESNO) at Arizona State University serves all EarthScope stakeholders, including researchers, educators, students, and the general public. ESNO supports and promotes E&O through social media and the web, inSights newsletters and published articles, E&O workshops for informal educators (interpreters), an annual Speaker Series, assistance to grassroots K-12 STEM teacher professional development projects (typically led by EarthScope researchers), continuing education for researchers, collaborations with other Earth-science E&O providers, and biennial National Conferences. The EarthScope E&O program at ESNO, now in its final year at Arizona State University, leads and supports wide dissemination of the data, findings, and legacy of EarthScope. Significant activities in 2014 include an Interpretive Workshop in Alaska; the US Science and Engineering Festival; the Decade Symposium in Washington, DC; the Great ShakeOut; local and regional outreach; and a continued strong and exemplary E&O presence online. The EarthScope National Office is supported by the National Science Foundation under grants EAR-1101100 and EAR-1216301. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER TO U.S. INDEPENDENT OIL AND NATURAL GAS PRODUCERS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Unknown

2002-11-01

The Petroleum Technology Transfer Council (PTTC) continued pursuing its mission of assisting U.S. independent oil and gas producers make timely, informed technology decisions by providing access to information during Fiscal Year 2002 (FY02). Functioning as a cohesive national organization, PTTC has active grassroots programs through its ten Regional Lead Organizations (RLOs) and three satellite offices that efficiently extend the program reach. They bring research and academia to the table via their association with geological surveys and engineering departments. The regional directors interact with independent oil and gas producers through technology workshops, resource centers, websites, newsletters, various technical publications and othermore » outreach efforts. These are guided by regional Producer Advisory Groups (PAGs), who are area operators and service companies working with the regional networks. The role of the national Headquarters (HQ) staff includes planning and managing the PTTC program, conducting nation wide technology transfer activities, and implementing a comprehensive communications effort. The organization effectively combines federal funding through the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy with state and industry funding to achieve important goals for all of these sectors. This integrated funding base is combined with industry volunteers guiding PTTC's activities and the dedication of national and regional staff to achieve notable results. PTTC is increasingly recognized as a critical resource for information and access to technologies, especially for smaller companies without direct contact with R&D efforts. The DOE participation is managed through the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), which deploys a national natural gas program via the Strategic Center for Natural Gas (SCNG) and a national oil program through the National Petroleum Technology Office (NTPO). This technical progress report summarizes PTTC's accomplishments during FY02. Activities were maintained at recent record levels. Strategic planning from multiple sources within the framework of the organization gives PTTC the vision to have even more impact in the future. The Houston Headquarters (HQ) location has strived to serve PTTC well in better connecting with producers and the service sector. PTTC's reputation for unbiased bottom line information stimulates cooperative ventures with other organizations. Efforts to build the contact database, exhibit at more trade shows and a new E-mail Technology Alert service are expanding PTTC's audience. All considered, the PTTC network has proven to be an effective way to reach domestic producers locally, regionally and nationally.« less

Environmental justice and healthy communities

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

1995-12-01

The environmental justice movement has come a long way since its birth a decade ago in rural and mostly African American Warren County, North Carolina. The selection of Warren County for a PCB landfill, they brought national attention to waste facility siting inequities and galvanized African American church and civil rights leaders` support for environmental justice. The demonstrations also put {open_quotes}environmental racism{close_quotes} on the map and challenged the myth that African Americans are not concerned about or involved in environmental issues. Grassroots groups, after decades of struggle, have grown to become the core of the multi-issue, multiracial, and multi-regional environmentalmore » justice movement. Diverse community-based groups have begun to organize and link their struggles to issues of civil and human rights, land rights and sovereignty, cultural survival , racial and social justice, and sustainable development. The impetus for getting environmental justice on the nations`s agenda has come from an alliance of grassroots activists, civil rights leaders, and a few academicians who questioned the foundation of the current environmental protection paradigm--where communities of color receive unequal protection. Whether urban ghettos and barrios, rural {open_quotes}poverty pockets,{close_quotes} Native American reservations, or communities in the Third World, grassroots groups are demanding an end to unjust and nonsustainable environmental and development policies.« less

Cloud-based hospital information system as a service for grassroots healthcare institutions.

PubMed

Yao, Qin; Han, Xiong; Ma, Xi-Kun; Xue, Yi-Feng; Chen, Yi-Jun; Li, Jing-Song

2014-09-01

Grassroots healthcare institutions (GHIs) are the smallest administrative levels of medical institutions, where most patients access health services. The latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics of China showed that 96.04 % of 950,297 medical institutions in China were at the grassroots level in 2012, including county-level hospitals, township central hospitals, community health service centers, and rural clinics. In developing countries, these institutions are facing challenges involving a shortage of funds and talent, inconsistent medical standards, inefficient information sharing, and difficulties in management during the adoption of health information technologies (HIT). Because of the necessity and gravity for GHIs, our aim is to provide hospital information services for GHIs using Cloud computing technologies and service modes. In this medical scenario, the computing resources are pooled by means of a Cloud-based Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) to serve multiple GHIs, with different hospital information systems dynamically assigned and reassigned according to demand. This paper is concerned with establishing a Cloud-based Hospital Information Service Center to provide hospital information software as a service (HI-SaaS) with the aim of providing GHIs with an attractive and high-performance medical information service. Compared with individually establishing all hospital information systems, this approach is more cost-effective and affordable for GHIs and does not compromise HIT performance.

HIV prevention in action on the football field: the WhizzKids United program in South Africa.

PubMed

Balfour, Louise; Farrar, Thomas; McGilvray, Marcus; Wilson, Douglas; Tasca, Giorgio A; Spaans, Johanna N; Mathews, Catherine; Maziya, Lungile; Khanyile, Siphosihle; Dalgleish, Tracy L; Cameron, William D

2013-07-01

The Africaid Trust is a grassroots South African non-profit organization that engages youth in HIV prevention by harnessing the popularity of football (i.e. soccer). WhizzKids United, the organization's primary program, operates a 12-week program in elementary schools in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, which aims to impart knowledge and life skills critical to HIV prevention. The goal of this research was to compare elementary school youth who received the program to youth who only received traditional classroom-based HIV education on health behaviors and HIV-related knowledge and stigma. A secondary objective was to evaluate HIV knowledge, sexual behaviors, attitudes towards HIV and health care seeking behaviors among South African youth in grades 9-12. Elementary students who participated in the program reported greater HIV knowledge and lower HIV stigma (p < .001) than those who had not. The majority of youth in grades 9-12 report having sexual relations (55.6%), despite low levels of HIV testing (29.9%) in this high HIV prevalence region of South Africa. The results highlight the importance of supporting community-based HIV educational initiatives that engage high-risk youth in HIV prevention and the need for youth-friendly health services.

Rethinking women's learning and empowerment in Kenya: Maasai village women take initiative

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takayanagi, Taeko

2016-12-01

This study investigates the activities of a village-based literacy centre in Kenya and explores the benefits of community development activities on women's well-being in Africa. Through the analysis of the stories of two Maasai women who had experienced adult literacy learning, the author discovered that: (1) the literacy instructor had inadequate in-service teacher training support from the government; (2) these women were using a space generated by collaborative informal learning through the literacy centre to improve their families' and community's well-being; and (3) these women gained empowerment through community development activities organised by the literacy centre. The author concludes that grassroots literacy and informal learning have been effective in improving the quality of life for the village women, and should be encouraged and supported by external agencies.

ACHP | News

Science.gov Websites

Worldwide, where she designed and implemented communications, grassroots, political and legislative , and political consulting fields based primarily in Washington, DC, and Sacramento, California. She has

All for one and one for all: The value of grassroots collaboration in clinical research.

PubMed

Al Wattar, Bassel H; Tamblyn, Jennifer

2017-08-01

Collaboration in health research is common in current practice. Engaging grassroots clinicians in the evidence synthesis and research process can deliver impactful results and reduce research wastage. The UKARCOG is a group of specialty trainees in obstetrics and gynaecology in the UK aiming to promote women's health research by delivering high-quality impactful research and national audit projects. The collaborative enables trainees to develop essential academic skills and roll out multicentre research projects at high cost-effectiveness. Collective research work can face a number of challenges such as establishing a joint authorship style, gaining institutional support and acquiring funds to boost networking and deliver large scales studies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Making space: Jennifer Camper, LGBTQ anthologies, and queer comics communities.

PubMed

Galvan, Margaret

2018-05-04

This article examines the career of lesbian cartoonist Jennifer Camper and how she has fostered queer community both in her comics and in real life. Archival research in LGBTQ archives and in Camper's own personal papers evidences how Camper begins developing her comics in the 1980s by participating in various grassroots LGBTQ publication spaces. From this foundation of support, she engages in comics activism with her representations of these communities during the midst of the AIDS crisis. Through these analyses, this article theorizes how Camper foregrounds intersectionality and counterpublics in her work on and off the page.

Influence of health promotion bureaucracy on community participation: a Canadian case study.

PubMed

Boyce, William F

2002-03-01

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate, through a Canadian case study, the bureaucratic support and obstacles for community participation in health promotion. The paper begins with a brief history of the development of a participatory health promotion programme in Canada. The role of bureaucracies on participation of communities is highlighted. Secondly, the paper describes how a variety of bureaucratic factors affected grassroots community participation efforts of local projects in one province. Finally, discussion focuses on how community participation is constrained in a bureau-cratically mediated activity such as health promotion.

Wonsuom--a rural communication project in Ghana.

PubMed

Boafo, S T

1984-01-01

The urban bias of the communication infrastructure in most parts of sub-Saharan Africa has comprised a major obstacle to the participation of the rural population in development decsion making. This article describes the Wonsuom rural communication pilot project in Ghana, aimed at providing communication technologies at the grassroots level to enhance the contribution of communication in rural development. When fully operational, the project will use a combination of a rural newspaper published in the local Fante language, rural radio broadcasts, radio listening clubs, and slide projectors to carry development-oriented information to rural communities and mobilize people for development programs. The project, which is carried out by the School of Journalism and Communication of the University of Ghana, covers 22 rural communities with a population of 150,000. The radio programs, started in 1983, include local and national news; discussions involving local community leaders, farmers, fishermen, and extension agents on problems facing the community and on issues such as primary health care and family planning; and features on the achievements of individual community members and development activities. Radio listening clubs meet on a regular basis to listen to the broadcasts, discuss issues highlighted, and deliberate on ways to generate development projects in their community. The discussions are recorded for subsequent broadcast on the program, creating a 2-way communication process. The listening clubs also serve as the focus of social and cultural life in the communities. Publication of the newspaper has been delayed by problems stemming from Ghana's socioeconomic crisis, but newspaper reading clubs are also projected.

Recovery and positive psychology: parallel themes and potential synergies.

PubMed

Resnick, Sandra G; Rosenheck, Robert A

2006-01-01

The positive psychology movement studies the sources of human strength and the foundations of the "good life." Like the recovery movement, it focuses on personal fulfillment and well-being more than on mental illness. These movements have followed separate but parallel tracks. Positive psychology has traveled an academic and empirical path and the recovery movement has followed a grassroots advocacy model. The authors describe the successful use of the Values in Action Inventory of Strengths in a Department of Veterans Affairs psychiatric rehabilitation program. They argue for the integration of positive psychology and the recovery movement: positive psychology provides a potentially useful framework for further defining and fostering the goals of recovery, and the recovery movement can expand the hitherto limited application of positive psychology.

Earthquake Preparedness and Education: A Collective Impact Approach to Improving Awareness and Resiliency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benthien, M. L.; Wood, M. M.; Ballmann, J. E.; DeGroot, R. M.

2017-12-01

The Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC), headquartered at the University of Southern California, is a collaboration of more than 1000 scientists and students from 70+ institutions. SCEC's Communication, Education, and Outreach (CEO) program translates earthquake science into products and activities in order to increase scientific literacy, develop a diverse scientific workforce, and reduce earthquake risk to life and property. SCEC CEO staff coordinate these efforts through partnership collaborations it has established to engage subject matter experts, reduce duplication of effort, and achieve greater results. Several of SCEC's collaborative networks began within Southern California and have since grown statewide (Earthquake Country Alliance, a public-private-grassroots partnership), national ("EPIcenter" Network of museums, parks, libraries, etc.), and international (Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills with millions of participants each year). These networks have benefitted greatly from partnerships with national (FEMA), state, and local emergency managers. Other activities leverage SCEC's networks in new ways and with national earth science organizations, such as the EarthConnections Program (with IRIS, NAGT, and many others), Quake Catcher Network (with IRIS) and the GeoHazards Messaging Collaboratory (with IRIS, UNAVCO, and USGS). Each of these partnerships share a commitment to service, collaborative development, and the application of research (including social science theory for motivating preparedness behaviors). SCEC CEO is developing new evaluative structures and adapting the Collective Impact framework to better understand what has worked well or what can be improved, according to the framework's five key elements: create a common agenda; share common indicators and measurement; engage diverse stakeholders to coordinate mutually reinforcing activities; initiate continuous communication; and provide "backbone" support. This presentation will provide an overview of SCEC's partnership activities and how we are adapting them within the Collective Impact framework. The goal is to present our collaborations as case studies for similar efforts seeking to improve the translation of applied research into policy in order to reduce the impact of natural hazards.

InsightSTEM Campus Ambassadors: Welcoming, Including, and Supporting All in STEM Careers Worldwide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noel-Storr, J.

2016-12-01

Definitions of genders and, races, ethnicities, abilities and sexualities tend to exist on a binary scale (e.g. male/female, black/white) both for inclusiveness and evaluation of programs. This has the potential to be a schism for individuals who are choosing to enter STEM fields when if their self-identity does not fit this these predefined multi-polar templates. At InsightSTEM, in our Campus Ambassadors program (which has over 290 grassroots members in over 25 countries) we have been striving to nullify this effect... For example, on our application, we choose to not ask for any demographic data, in any spectrum, because those data make no sense on a global stage. We question that if race, gender, sexuality and ethnicity are all on a spectrum: is any program devoted to a particular group appropriate? Instead we deliver professional development to students worldwide to train them to become aware and inclusive STEM educators, involving everyone in their programs no matter what their background. We will present the ways we work with our Campus Ambassadors to create programs that, rather than focusing on particular groups, are truly inclusive, in developing their skills and empowering them to create inclusive programs worldwide for all. InsightSTEM Campus Ambassadors: Welcoming, Including, and & Supporting All in STEM Careers Worldwide

JICA support of NGO project succeeds.

PubMed

2000-05-01

In 1997, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) started the Community Empowerment Program (CEP) to directly help people at the grassroots level in developing countries. It was created to directly benefit people in developing countries by improving their livelihood and welfare. Under the program, model projects are implemented together with local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). The Capacity Building for Sustainable Reproductive Health Care Project in Jessore District in Bangladesh, is a pioneer of JICA and NGO cooperation under CEP, and it aims to develop the capacity of service providers to deliver sustainable reproductive health (RH) services in rural areas through community involvement. To achieve this, training for community health promoters (CHPs) is provided to enable them to deliver an Essential Services Package (ESP) of integrated health and RH services to rural beneficiaries. So far, a total of 125 people have been trained, including 75 CHPs, 10 health assistants, and 40 family welfare assistants. Midterm evaluation of the project indicated that the project had pioneered the development of 17 ESP modules and has established the strong potential to link with government programs for future sustainability.

Demystifying the Expert

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Constantin, Anca; Feitosa, Klebert

We present here a program that aims at significantly diminishing the increasingly pervasive fear of approaching scientific concepts, particularly for people without math related backgrounds or interests. We built a series of grassroots yet unique science shows delivered in an up-beat, visually, and socially appealing environment, that bring forward the crucially needed bridge between the realm of scientific research and that of ordinary people through... comedy. While staged by two physics professors as hosts, the hilarious interactions between a science expert and a student-led improvisational comedy troupe constitute the main tool to unlock, decipher, and enjoy the mystery of the scientific research. Our program gets everyone in with lots of laughs, at no expense to academic quality, community involvement, diversity, excellence, integrity, and student focus. Our independent dedicated website for this project (sites.jmu.edu/demystifying), archives the podcasts (soundcloud.com/demystifying), short segment videos, blog posts, experts' bios, photo albums, testimonials, press releases, along with quantitative results of our assessment efforts. The overarching goal of this program is to pioneer a low cost yet efficient method of science education that can be replicated world wide.

21st century tools to prioritize contaminants for monitoring and ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The webinar focused on ways that ToxCast high throughput screening data and the adverse outcome pathway framework, under development in the CSS program, can be used to prioritize environmental contaminants for monitoring and management. The webinar focused on ways that ToxCast high throughput screening data and the adverse outcome pathway framework, under development in the CSS program, can be used to prioritize environmental contaminants for monitoring and management. The work presented focused on case studies conducted in Region 8, in collaboration with EPA Region 8 and NEIC, as well as other federal (USGS, US FWS) and regional partners (Northern Colorado Plateau Network). The Consortium for Research and Education on Emerging Contaminants (CREEC) is a grass-roots 501(c)(3) non-profit organization comprised of world-class scientists and stakeholders with a shared interest in the source, fate, and physiological effects of contaminants of emerging concern (www.creec.net). As such, they represent an important group of stakeholders with an interest in applying the data, approaches, and tools that are being developed by the CSS program.

Applying 21st century tools to watersheds of the western US ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The webinar focused on ways that ToxCast high throughput screening data and the adverse outcome pathway framework, under development in the CSS program, can be used to prioritize environmental contaminants for monitoring and management. The webinar focused on ways that ToxCast high throughput screening data and the adverse outcome pathway framework, under development in the CSS program, can be used to prioritize environmental contaminants for monitoring and management. The work presented focused on case studies conducted in Region 8, in collaboration with EPA Region 8 and NEIC, as well as other federal (USGS, US FWS) and regional partners (Northern Colorado Plateau Network). The Consortium for Research and Education on Emerging Contaminants (CREEC) is a grass-roots 501(c)(3) non-profit organization comprised of world-class scientists and stakeholders with a shared interest in the source, fate, and physiological effects of contaminants of emerging concern (www.creec.net). As such, they represent an important group of stakeholders with an interest in applying the data, approaches, and tools that are being developed by the CSS program.

Innovating on Japanese Cooperative Education in Miyagi National College of Technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ikeda, Senri; Itoh, Masahiko; Nakamura, Tomio; Suzuki, Katsuhiko; Utsumi, Yasuo

The work integrated learning (WIL) is quite essential for students of engineer education to solve the various problems in manufacturing products. The term of the Japanese internship for students is too short to bridge the gap of “School to Work” . As the cooperative education (CE) systems, like the German “Dual-systems” , in western countries are very different from the internship in Japan, there are many kinds of difficulties to be overcome before adopting them. Miyagi National College of Technology (MNCT) has innovated in a new program to establish CE systems regularly in Japan. This time, two teams, made up from not only the institution but also administrations and companies, were delegated for benchmarking after European WACE (World Association for CE) countries, i.e. UK, Sweden, Finland, and Germany. The concept of the Engineer Training Center (ETC, or “TORESEN” ) , that will be offered thorough CE in order to bring up students to “expert engineers” , was proposed. This has another major scheme that is a grassroots program to produce “good teachers” as a faculty development (FD) program.

Transportation librarian's toolkit

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-12-01

The Transportation Librarians Toolkit is a product of the Transportation Library Connectivity pooled fund study, TPF- 5(105), a collaborative, grass-roots effort by transportation libraries to enhance information accessibility and professional expert...

ACHP | News

Science.gov Websites

grassroots effort to preserve and interpret the remains of the Granada Relocation Center, better known as at Granada High School, and the organization consists of student volunteers. Their work includes

An exploratory study of complementary and alternative medicine in hospital midwifery: models of care and professional struggle.

PubMed

Adams, Jon

2006-02-01

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is increasingly popular amongst midwives in Australia. A growing number of hospital midwives are personally integrating one or a range of CAM within their midwifery practice. Despite this trend we still know little about CAM in midwifery, particularly at a grass-roots level. This paper reports findings from one section of a larger exploratory study examining grass-root practitioners' understandings and experiences of complementary therapies in nursing and midwifery. Thirteen in-depth interviews were conducted with midwives working in New South Wales public hospitals and currently integrating CAM within their general midwifery practice. Analysis illustrates how midwives' explanations of, and affinity claims regarding, CAM feed into wider ongoing issues relating to professional autonomy and the relationship between midwifery and obstetrics.

How Community Organizing Promotes Health Equity, And How Health Equity Affects Organizing.

PubMed

Pastor, Manuel; Terriquez, Veronica; Lin, May

2018-03-01

Public health scholarship increasingly recognizes community organizing as a vehicle for unleashing the collective power necessary to uproot socioeconomic inequities at the core of health disparities. In this article we reverse the analytical focus from how organizing can affect health equity, and we consider how the frame of health equity has shaped grassroots organizing. Using evidence from a range of cases in California, we suggest that the health equity frame can guide and justify grassroots groups' efforts to improve the health outcomes of marginalized populations; connect issues such as housing and school discipline to health; and provide a rationale for community organizing groups to directly address the trauma experienced by their own members and staff, who often come from communities at risk for poor health outcomes.

77 FR 22229 - Hazardous Waste Technical Corrections and Clarifications Rule

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-04-13

... concerning this amendment from Safe Food and Fertilizer (hereafter referred to as Safe Food), a grassroots.... * * * * * (a) * * * Industry and EPA hazardous waste No. Hazardous waste Hazard code * * * * * * * Organic...

Grassroots responsiveness to human rights abuse: history of the Washtenaw Interfaith Coalition for Immigrant Rights.

PubMed

Sanders, Laura; Martinez, Ramiro; Harner, Margaret; Harner, Melanie; Horner, Pilar; Delva, Jorge

2013-04-01

The purpose of this article is to discuss how a community agency based in Washtenaw County, the Washtenaw Interfaith Coalition for Immigration Rights (WICIR), emerged in response to increasing punitive immigration practices and human rights abuses toward the Latino community. The article discusses how WICIR is engaged in advocacy, community education on immigration issues, and political action toward a more humane immigration reform. Detailed examples of human rights abuses and the WICIR activities described in response to the abuses serve as illustrations of social work advocacy, education, and policy formulation that affect the general public, policymakers, and law enforcement officials.

Faith in public power paid off for Ontario

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Smart, R.J.

Ontario Hydro is the result of a grassroots belief that public power would create an industrial tax base and benefit the entire community. After 75 years, Ontario Hydro has $18 billion in assets, a dependable 22.6 thousand-MW peak capacity, and residential utility bills that are only one third of New York City's. The potential of Niagara Falls as a power source prompted a 1902 drive for public power which took another 19 years to realize. An overview of Ontario Hydro's development highlights the role of a 25-man syndicate led by Adam Beck, the influence of Ontario Hydro on the developersmore » of the Tennessee Valley Authority, the tapping of the St. Lawrence River, and the CANDU nuclear program. 1 figure. (DCK)« less

Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance

MedlinePlus

... Cookies ? Yes Wait Leave Provided by OpenGlobal E-commerce Please wait while your page loads ... FARA Cure ... Help Ways to Donate rideATAXIA Team FARA FARA Energy Ball Grassroots Fundraising Fundraising Tools Raising Awareness Advocacy ...

Grassroots Rural and Small Community Water Systems Assistance Act

THOMAS, 113th Congress

Sen. Wicker, Roger F. [R-MS

2013-05-06

Senate - 04/01/2014 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 340. (All Actions) Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

Learning To Live Together.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nolan, Paul

2003-01-01

Grassroots communities in Northern Ireland are undertaking learning initiatives aimed at conflict reduction and community building. Efforts include replacing prejudice with knowledge, offering antisectarian education, building healthy individual communities before transcending differences, and celebrating cultural traditions. (SK)

Grassroots volunteers in context: rewarding and adverse experiences of local women working on HIV and AIDS in Kilimanjaro, Tanzania.

PubMed

Corbin, J Hope; Mittelmark, Maurice B; Lie, Gro T

2016-09-01

Many nongovernmental organizations in Africa rely on grassroots volunteers to provide critical health services. Considering context and the interplay of individual, organizational, and societal influences on the experience of volunteers, this paper addresses three questions: What do grassroots volunteers contribute? What organizational processes promote volunteer engagement? What are the positive and negative consequences of volunteering? Eighteen members and staff of the Tanzanian HIV and AIDS NGO, KIWAKKUKI, were selected from 6000+ women volunteers to be interviewed. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for themes. Within KIWAKKUKI, volunteers contributed time and local knowledge, leading to an indigenous educational approach building on local norms and customs. Volunteers' engagement was motivated by the desire to support family members, reverse stigma, and work/socialize with other women. Benefits to volunteers included skills acquisition and community recognition; yet some volunteers also reported negative experiences including burnout, conferred stigma, and domestic violence. Positive organizational processes built on cultural practices such as collective decision-making and singing. The findings point to important considerations about context, including the synergistic effect training can have on local traditions of caring, complications of gender inequity, and how community health planning processes may need to be modified in extremely poor settings. This research also suggests good utility of the research framework (the Bergen Model of Collaborative Functioning) that was used to analyze volunteer engagement for service delivery in sub-Saharan contexts. © The Author(s) 2015.

Virtual Zika transmission after the first U.S. case: who said what and how it spread on Twitter.

PubMed

Vijaykumar, Santosh; Nowak, Glen; Himelboim, Itai; Jin, Yan

2018-05-01

This paper goes beyond detecting specific themes within Zika-related chatter on Twitter, to identify the key actors who influence the diffusive process through which some themes become more amplified than others. We collected all Zika-related tweets during the 3 months immediately after the first U.S. case of Zika. After the tweets were categorized into 12 themes, a cross-section were grouped into weekly datasets, to capture 12 amplifier/user groups, and analyzed by 4 amplification modes: mentions, retweets, talkers, and Twitter-wide amplifiers. We analyzed 3,057,130 tweets in the United States and categorized 4997 users. The most talked about theme was Zika transmission (~58%). News media, public health institutions, and grassroots users were the most visible and frequent sources and disseminators of Zika-related Twitter content. Grassroots users were the primary sources and disseminators of conspiracy theories. Social media analytics enable public health institutions to quickly learn what information is being disseminated, and by whom, regarding infectious diseases. Such information can help public health institutions identify and engage with news media and other active information providers. It also provides insights into media and public concerns, accuracy of information on Twitter, and information gaps. The study identifies implications for pandemic preparedness and response in the digital era and presents the agenda for future research and practice. Copyright © 2018 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER TO U.S. INDEPENDENT OIL AND NATURAL GAS PRODUCERS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Donald Duttlinger

2001-11-01

The Petroleum Technology Transfer Council (PTTC) continued pursuing its mission of helping U.S. independent oil and gas producers make timely, informed technology decisions during Fiscal Year 2001 (FY01). Functioning as a cohesive national organization, PTTC has active grassroots programs through its ten Regional Lead Organizations (RLOs). They bring research and academia to the table via their association with geological surveys and engineering departments. The regional directors interact with independent oil and gas producers through technology workshops, resource centers, websites, newsletters, various technical publications and other outreach efforts. These are guided by regional Producer Advisory Groups (PAGs), who are area operatorsmore » and service companies working with the regional networks. The role of the national Headquarters (HQ) staff includes planning and managing the PTTC program, conducting nation wide technology transfer activities, and implementing a comprehensive communications effort. The organization effectively combines federal funding through the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy, state, and industry funding to achieve important goals for all of these sectors. This integrated funding base, combined with industry volunteers guiding PTTC's activities and the dedication of national and regional staff, are achieving notable results. PTTC is increasingly recognized as a critical resource for information and access to technologies, especially for smaller companies without direct contact to R&D efforts. This technical progress report summarizes PTTC's accomplishments during FY01, which lays the groundwork for further growth in the future. At a time of many industry changes and wide market movements, the organization itself is adapting to change. PTTC has built a reputation and expectation among producers and other industry participants to quickly distribute information addressing technical needs. The organization efficiently has an impact on business economics as the focus remains on proven applicable technologies, which target cost reduction and efficiency gains.« less

Astronomy at the Market

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roten, Robert; Constantin, A.; Christensen, E.; Dick, E.; Lapolla, J.; Nutter, A.; Corcoran, J.; DiDomenico, N.; Eskridge, B.; Saikin, A.

2014-01-01

We present here an energetic grass-roots outreach program run entirely by undergraduate physics and astronomy majors at James Madison University. Our "Team Awestronomy" takes Astronomy out to the Market, literally. Once a month, for eight months during the academic year, the group sets up a “scientific corner” at the Harrisonburg Farmers Market, offering people the chance to meet with astrophysicists (in the making) and discuss science. Our group members wear t-shirts with simple messages like “Ask me about the Sun,” “...about Black Holes and Mega-Masers” or “...about Big Bang” that initiate the dialog. We help our audience with observations of solar activity through our department’s Coronado telescope equipped with a safe H-alpha filter, sunspotters, and the incredibly simple yet durable and accurate handheld (Project Star) spectrometers, and invite them to the free Saturday Planetarium shows and the star parties hosted by our department on the JMU campus. The team is also prepared with a suite of fun activities aimed particularly at K-5 kids, e.g., building (and eating, after investigating out-gassing properties of) ”dirty comets,” making craters (in pans with flour or sand) and testing how different types of impactors (pebbles, ping-pong balls or even crumpled aluminum foil) affect crater formation, and demonstrations of shock wave created in supernova explosions. The main goals of this outreach program are: 1) to illustrate to people of all ages that science is a fun, creative, and exciting process; 2) to empower people to be curious and to ask questions; 3) to demonstrate that science is a viable career path chosen by many diverse individuals; and 4) to nurture a sense of wonder and awe for the Universe. While this outreach program is aimed at a very general audience, of an extremely wide range, we expect to produce a significant impact on K-12 students in general and in particular on the home-schooled kids. There is a relatively high fraction 20%) of home-schooled children in Harrisonburg/Rockingham County. We present a variety of methods by which we assess the success and impact of this program to the community.

Determinants of stunting among children aged 6-59 months at Kindo Didaye woreda, Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia: Unmatched case control study

PubMed Central

Batiro, Bancha; Demissie, Tsegaye; Halala, Yoseph

2017-01-01

Background Stunting is a well-established risk marker of poor child development. Globally in 2017, 155 million children under 5 were estimated to be stunted. While different activities are being done to reduce the burden of stunted growth, the problem is overwhelming in Africa; it was increased by 24%. Therefore, identifying determinants of stunting among children aged 6–59 would help to set priorities for action and to the design of stunting reduction plan at a grassroots level. Methods The unmatched case-control study was conducted in randomly selected 8 rural kebeles of Kindo Didaye woreda, Ethiopia from February to April, 2016 to identify the determinants of stunting among children aged 6–59 months. The sampling frame was identified by enumeration of 6–59 months of age children in the entire households of the study area. From which 155 as cases and 310 as controls were chosen using anthropometric measurement based on the median of WHO 2006 reference population. The anthropometric data were analyzed by WHO Anthro 2010 software to generate Z-score values. Odds Ratio along with 95% confidence interval was estimated to identify determinants of stunting using the multivariable logistic regression. Results Drinking water from unsafe source (AOR = 7.06, 95% CI; 4.40–20.42),occasionally eating animal source food (AOR = 0.51, 95% CI; 0.02–0.68), ARI in the past two weeks (AOR = 3.04, (95% CI; 1.04–13.35), late initiation of breastfeeding after one hours after birth (AOR = 5.16, 95% CI; 2.24–15.90) and lack of vaccination (AOR = 6.38, 95% CI; 2.54–17.10)were significantly associated with stunting. Conclusions Factors like exposure to diarrhea disease, exposure to acute respiratory infection, late initiation of breast milk after child breath, squeeze out of 1st breast milk, lack of vaccination, animal source of food, and unsafe source of water for drinking could be used to set priorities for action and to the design of Kindo Didaye woreda plan for stunting reduction down to grassroots level. Therefore, zonal health department and Kindo Didaye woreda health office should promote the importance of colostrums feeding. Drinking water should be decontaminated. Expansion of vaccination program to enhance herd immunity at the community level is important. PMID:29261680

Cryogenic Orbital Test Bed 3 (CRYOTE3) Overview and Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stephens, Jonathan; Martin, Jim; Smith, James; Sisco, Jim; Marsell, Brandon; Roth, Jacob; Schallhorn, Paul; Wanzie, Nathaniel; Piryk, David; Bauer, Jeffrey;

TeleFood: a worldwide appeal.

PubMed

1997-12-01

In 1997, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) broadcast its first global television program on the theme of "Food for All" to an audience of approximately 450 million viewers. The objective of "TeleFood" was to raise awareness of the scale of the problem and to encourage solidarity in the fight against hunger. TeleFood raised funds to support the FAO's Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS) and similar grassroots projects that target rural people in developing countries. The SPFS project, now operational in 19 countries and being formulated in 32 more, emphasizes national ownership, farmer participation, environmental awareness, and recognition of the role of women in food production and marketing. The 3-year SPFS pilot phase involves 1) small-scale water harvesting, irrigation, and drainage; 2) sustainable intensification of crop production; 3) diversification of production; and 4) removal of policies that impede food security. Results to date include 1) greatly increased maize and potato yields in Bolivia and more modest increases in Nepal; 2) doubled yields of maize and rice in Tanzania; and 3) expansion of the area under low-cost irrigation in Zambia. South-South cooperation is allowing some developing countries to benefit from experience gained in other developing countries. The pilot activities are being funded with an increasing number of "soft" loans from governments and financial institutions.

JOICFP included in GII mission to Ghana. Global Issues Initiative.

PubMed

1996-03-01

Among countries in West Africa, Ghana is the main focus of the Global Issues Initiative (GII) on Population and AIDS and one of twelve priority countries selected for official development assistance (ODA) under the program. A ten-member project formulation mission sent to Ghana by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of Japan was in the country during January 10-18. This mission was the first of its kind to be sent to Africa. It was led by the director of the Third Project Formulation Study Division, Project Formulation Study Department, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and included representatives of MOFA, JICA, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and an observer from UNAIDS. The mission's chief objective was to explore possibilities for Japanese cooperation in the areas of population, child health, and HIV/AIDS in line with the Mid-Term Health Strategy (MTHS) formulated in 1995 by the government of Ghana. The mission also explored the possibility of collaboration with major donors, international organizations, international agencies, and NGOs. The mission met with representatives of NGOs from population, women, AIDS, and health-related areas on January 13, who were then briefed upon Japan's Grant Assistance for Grassroots Project for local NGOs. Views were exchanged upon NGO activities.

Chinese IP expands with self-reliance.

PubMed

1999-05-01

In 1999, program officers from JOICFP visited five of 10 projects where JOICFP has provided direct assistance during 1993-95 to enhance health education in China's integrated family planning, maternal-child health programs. The JOICFP team and three members of the Chinese National Steering Committee of the Integrated Projects visited project areas in remote and mountainous areas that are characterized by underdevelopment, low income rates, low rates of hospital deliveries, and high rates of parasitic infection. The monitoring team found that all project areas continued the projects after completion of the 3-year period and even expanded efforts to cover other areas. By 1998, more than a million people had been served, which is quadruple the initial target number. The team found that the program could benefit from additional assistance in training new staff to interact with the public and to use IEC (information, education, communication) materials appropriately. One project area, Shaowu City, opened a new Family Health Service Center in August 1998 with a grant from the Japanese Grant Assistance for Grassroots Projects and assistance from its provincial and local government. This Center serves women and children and adolescents on a fee-charged basis and hopes to expand its service area.

Re-designing an Earth Sciences outreach program for Rhode Island public elementary schools to address new curricular standards and logistical realities in the community

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richter, N.; Vachula, R. S.; Pascuzzo, A.; Prilipko Huber, O.

2017-12-01

In contrast to middle and high school students, elementary school students in Rhode Island (RI) have no access to dedicated science teachers, resulting in uneven quality and scope of science teaching across the state. In an attempt to improve science education in local public elementary schools, the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences (DEEPS) at Brown University initiated a student-driven science-teaching program that was supported by a NSF K-12 grant from 2007 to 2014. The program led to the development of an extensive in-house lesson plan database and supported student-led outreach and teaching in several elementary and middle school classrooms. After funding was terminated, the program continued on a volunteer basis, providing year-round science teaching for several second-grade classrooms. During the 2016-2017 academic year, New Generation Science Standards (NGSS) were introduced in RI public schools, and it became apparent that our outreach efforts required adaptation to be more efficient and relevant for both elementary school students and teachers. To meet these new needs, DEEPS, in collaboration with the Providence Public School District, created an intensive summer re-design program involving both graduate and undergraduate students. Three multi-lesson units were developed in collaboration with volunteer public school teachers to specifically address NGSS goals for earth science teaching in 2nd, 3rd and 4th grades. In the 2017-2018 academic year DEEPS students will co-teach the science lessons with the public school teachers in two local elementary schools. At the end of the next academic year all lesson plans and activities will be made publically available through a newly designed DEEPS outreach website. We herein detail our efforts to create and implement new educational modules with the goals of: (1) empowering teachers to instruct science, (2) engaging students and fostering lasting STEM interest and competency, (3) optimizing volunteer resources, (4) meeting new state curricular standards, (5) developing publicly available lesson plans for other teachers and outreach programs, (6) institutionalizing the outreach program within the DEEPS community, and (7) cultivating STEM retention at the grassroots level.

Legislative Guide for Grassroots Action

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1997-08-30

Since Clarus was introduced in 2004, interest in and use of the system has increased substantially. By May 31, 2009, 33 state departments of transportation (DOT), three local DOTs, and three Canadian provinces were contributing their Road Weather Inf...

Sustaining engagement through work in postdisaster relief and reconstruction.

PubMed

Wang, Xiao Lu; Shi, Zhan Biao; Ng, Siu Man; Wang, Bin; Chan, Cecilia L W

2011-04-01

After the devastating 2008 earthquake in China, grass-roots government officials were the main local force in postquake relief and reconstruction. Like other survivors, many officials were severely bereaved. Their psychological well-being was at stake. We conducted 25 semistructured interviews to investigate sources of stress at work and their coping experiences. We coded interviews using the content analysis method. Misunderstandings and assaults from survivors, prolonged heavy workload, and grief and bereavement were major sources of stress at work. Finding meaning in the work, emotion regulation, and goal and time management were main coping strategies. The challenge and importance of the work, combined with support and recognition at work, fostered an empowering work environment. Few interviewees reported fatigue, whereas the majority displayed dedication to work, indicating a status of work engagement more than burnout among grass-roots officials. Implications of a meaning-oriented empowerment approach to stress management for disaster relief forces are drawn.

Grassroots Organizing and Data Rescue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schell, J.

2017-12-01

One of the most challenging aspects of organizing in the early days of the grassroots Data Rescue movement was figuring out how to best utilize the great variety of people who wanted to help preserve what they saw as vulnerable data. It was also the most rewarding, seeing students, librarians, scientists, sys admins, and high school teachers (among many others) working together at events with little regard for hierarchies of experience and expertise. While Data Rescue efforts have become more focused and refined since the end of January, it will be crucial to build upon both the passion that these volunteers brought to Data Rescue events as well as the wide varieties of expertise that will be necessary to address both short- and long-term needs. This session will describe some continuing efforts around both public engagement and the leveraging of varieties of expertise as we plan for long term preservation and access of crucial federal data.

Reaching Beijing to the grassroots.

PubMed

1996-01-01

India's Working Women's Forum (WWF) adopted a training strategy that allows participants to share their own experiences, identify the obstacles to their development, and devise strategies to overcome these obstacles. In order to improve the outcome of the Fourth World Conference on Women (FWCW), the WWF established communication links throughout its vast membership to facilitate the quick transmission of issues and ideas during the FWCW preparatory process and the postconference implementation process. To solidify these links, the WWF holds participatory workshops to foster interaction, disseminate ideas, and develop traditional communication materials to increase awareness and change attitudes in grassroots communities. Issues of concern aired at a recent workshop include the commercialization of the fishing industry that has eroded the livelihood of fisher women, the government policy of direct exportation of yarn needed by the traditional hand-loom sector, the status of the girl child, and prevention of female infanticide.

Culture change, leadership and the grass-roots workforce.

PubMed

Edwards, Mark; Penlington, Clare; Kalidasan, Varadarajan; Kelly, Tony

2014-08-01

The NHS is arguably entering its most challenging era. It is being asked to do more for less and, in parallel, a cultural shift in response to its described weaknesses has been prescribed. The definition of culture, the form this change should take and the mechanism to achieve it are not well understood. The complexity of modern healthcare requires that we evolve our approach to the workforce and enhance our understanding of the styles of leadership that are required in order to bring about this cultural change. Identification of leaders within the workforce and dissemination of a purposeful and strategic quality improvement agenda, in part defined by the general workforce, are important components in establishing the change that the organisation currently requires. We are implementing this approach locally by identifying and developing grassroots networks linked to a portfolio of safety and quality projects. © 2014 Royal College of Physicians.

Mentoring from Afar: Nurse Mentor Challenges in the Canadian Armed Forces.

PubMed

Neal, Laura D M

2015-06-01

There is an integral connection between leadership, mentoring and professional career progression within the nursing profession. The purpose of this article is to examine recommendations and best practices from the literature and provide a basis to construct a formalized successful mentoring dyad program with guidelines on establishing and maintaining a productive mentoring relationship over long distance. Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) nurses practice within a unique domain both domestically and abroad. The military environment incorporates many aspects of mentoring that could benefit significantly by distance interchange. Supported through examining literature within nursing, CAF publications and other professions along with contrasting successful distance mentoring programs, the findings suggest that a top-down, leadership-driven formal mentoring program could be beneficial to CAF nurses. The literature review outlines definitions of terms for mentorship and distance mentoring or e-mentoring. A cross section of technology is now embedded in all work environments with personal communication devices commonplace. Establishing mentoring relationships from afar is practical and feasible. This article provides a guided discussion for nursing leaders, managers and grassroots nurses to implement mentoring programs over distances. The recommendations and findings of this article could have universal applications to isolated nursing environments outside of Canadian military operational frameworks. Copyright © 2015 Longwoods Publishing.

China's women leaders promote quality and equity in family planning.

PubMed

He, S

1995-08-01

In China, key policy-makers at the highest levels of government recognize that the success of the family planning (FP) program depends upon improving the status of Chinese women. The highest ranking female government official, Peng Peiyun, a State Councilor and the Minister of the State Family Planning (FP) Commission, has initiated a new policy of improving the quality of service in the FP program. She recognizes that women who are gainfully employed and control their income are less likely to desire large families. One aspect of the effort to improve quality involves training FP personnel in interpersonal communication and counseling skills. The results of a pilot training program show that clients are pleased with the new approach and that use of FP services has increased. The FP Commission is also experimenting with programs which integrate all the needs of women and their families (FP, credit availability, old age support) in rural areas. Traditionally, sons provided for their elderly parents, so families with only one daughter are concerned about old age provision. Thus, national efforts are underway to develop social security systems. In the meantime, women at all levels, from grassroots FP acceptors to FP staff members and researchers are the major contributors to the innovations which will allow China to control its population growth.

[Workplace health promotion in public health policies in Poland].

PubMed

Puchalski, Krzysztof; Korzeniowska, Elzbieta

2008-01-01

In this paper the author analyses how far in Poland the idea of workplace health promotion (WHP) does exist in the area of public health understood in its broadest sense. The analysis encapsulates the following issues: (a) the national legislative policy, (b) strategies, programs and projects concerning health issues launched or coordinated by the state or local administration, (c) grassroots initiatives for health promotion supported by local and regional administration, (d) civic projects or business strategies for health. In addition, the author emphasizes the marginalization of workplace health promotion and lack of cohesive policy in this field as well as, the fact that health problems of the working population arising from current demographic, technological, economic and social changes that could be dealt with through developing and implementing WHP projects are not yet fully perceived by public health policy makers.

Is Ontario Selling Its Children Short?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grossman, Alana; Jordan, Anne

1998-01-01

Ontario, Canada's grassroots movement toward integrating disabled students harmonizes with governmental intentions to reduce costs while preserving student rights and accountability. However, decentralized, market-driven models hamper equity. More students are labelled exceptional, schools target privileged enrollees, minority students lack…

[Assessment on the capacity for programs regarding chronic non-communicable diseases prevention and control, in China].

PubMed

Si, Xiang; Zhai, Yi; Shi, Xiaoming

2014-06-01

To assess the policies and programs on the capacity of prevention and control regarding non-communicable diseases (NCDs) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCs) at all levels and grass roots health care institutions, in China. On-line questionnaire survey was adopted by 3 352 CDCs at provincial, city and county levels and 1 200 grass roots health care institutions. 1) On policies: 75.0% of the provincial governments provided special funding for chronic disease prevention and control, whereas 19.7% city government and 11.3% county government did so. 2) Infrastructure:only 7.1% county level CDCs reported having a department taking care of NCD prevention and control. 8 263 staff members worked on NCDs prevention and control, accounting for 4.2% of all the CDCs' personnel. 40.2% CDCs had special funding used for NCDs prevention and control. 3)Capacity on training and guidance:among all the CDCs, 96.9% at provincial level, 50.3% at city level and 42.1% at county level had organized training on NCDs prevention and control. Only 48.3% of the CDCs at county level provided technical guidance for grass-roots health care institutions. 4) Capacities regarding cooperation and participation: 20.2% of the CDCs had experience in collaborating with mass media. 5) Surveillance capacity: 64.6% of the CDCs at county level implemented death registration, compare to less than 30.0% of CDCs at county level implemented surveillance programs on major NCDs and related risk factors. In the grass roots health care institutions, 18.6% implemented new stroke case reporting system but only 3.0% implemented program on myocardial infarction case reporting. 6) Intervention and management capacity: 36.1% and 32.2% of the CDCs conducted individualized intervention on hypertension and diabetes, while less than another 20% intervened into other NCDs and risk factors. More than 50% of the grass roots health care institutions carried follow-up survey on hypertension and diabetes. Rates on hypertension and diabetes patient management were 12.0% and 7.9% , with rates on standard management as 73.8% and 80.1% and on control as 48.7% and 50.0%, respectively. 7) Capacity on Assessment: 13.3% of the CDCs or health administrations carried out evaluation programs related to the responses on NCDs in their respective jurisdiction. 8) On scientific research: the capacity on scientific research among provincial CDCs was apparently higher than that at the city or county level CDCs. Policies for NCDs prevention and control need to be improved. We noticed that there had been a huge gap between county level and provincial/city level CDCs on capacities related to NCDs prevention and control. At the grass-roots health care institutions, both prevention and control programs on chronic diseases did not seem to be effective.

New development of China's population programme.

PubMed

Peng, P

1998-06-01

This article presents excerpts of a speech presented by the State Family Planning Commissioner of China at the UNFPA headquarters. Madame Peng Peiyun indicated that China has adopted some new decision-making processes as a follow-up to the 1994 ICPD Plan of Action. President Jiang Zemin stated that sustainable development must be achieved as part of the movement toward modernization. China places great importance on balancing population growth, social production, economic development, resources, and the environment. In 1995, the State Family Planning Commission changed its guidelines and approaches by integrating family planning (FP) within socioeconomic development and shifting to an interest oriented program integrated with social restraints and integrating FP publicity and education with comprehensive services and modern management. The FP program should meet the needs for reproductive health and contraception and be integrated within poverty alleviation and economic development schemes in rural areas. The aim is to build happy and more civil-minded farming families. Attention should be directed to the interests of farmers and the physical and psychological health of women. Programs should be voluntary. Many poverty reduction programs operated in the early 1990s. Pilot programs were established in 1995, in 11 selected counties and urban districts. The aim was to improve grassroots efforts to meet clients' needs for quality reproductive health and contraception. In 1994, providers received upgrading of skills. As the most populous country in the world, China needs UNFPA support in stabilizing population growth.

Enhancing the Flight Safety Culture Through Training

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kanki, Barbara G.; Rosekind, Mark R. (Technical Monitor)

1996-01-01

In the 1970's, flight safety professionals became profoundly concerned about the prevalence of crew-caused accidents and incidents, and the role of human error in flight operations. As result, they initiated a change in the flight safety culture which has grown to significant proportions today. At the heart of the evolution were crew concepts such as flightdeck management, crew coordination, and cockpit resource management, concepts which seemed to target critical deficiencies. In themselves, the concepts were not new but their incorporation into training as a direct means of changing the flight safety culture was an untried, almost 'grassroots' approach. The targeted crew concepts and skills were not an integral part of the typical training program; the methods, curriculum, media, and even course content itself, would have to be developed and implemented from the bottom up. A familiar truism in the pilot culture is that you should 'Train the way you fly; Fly the way you train'. In short, training was expected to provide the pilot with practical operational skills that were consistent with the performance standards they were required to maintain and the operational demands they met on a daily basis. In short, one could not simply command crews to use good CRM; one would have to research and define these skills operationally as well as develop and implement a consistent and effective training program. Furthermore, one would need active support and collaboration among the research, industry and government communities in order to ensure acceptance and continued commitment. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

Ecologists can enable communities to implement malaria vector control in Africa

PubMed Central

Mukabana, W Richard; Kannady, Khadija; Kiama, G Michael; Ijumba, Jasper N; Mathenge, Evan M; Kiche, Ibrahim; Nkwengulila, Gamba; Mboera, Leonard; Mtasiwa, Deo; Yamagata, Yoichi; van Schayk, Ingeborg; Knols, Bart GJ; Lindsay, Steven W; de Castro, Marcia Caldas; Mshinda, Hassan; Tanner, Marcel; Fillinger, Ulrike; Killeen, Gerry F

2006-01-01

Background Integrated vector management (IVM) for malaria control requires ecological skills that are very scarce and rarely applied in Africa today. Partnerships between communities and academic ecologists can address this capacity deficit, modernize the evidence base for such approaches and enable future scale up. Methods Community-based IVM programmes were initiated in two contrasting settings. On Rusinga Island, Western Kenya, community outreach to a marginalized rural community was achieved by University of Nairobi through a community-based organization. In Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Ilala Municipality established an IVM programme at grassroots level, which was subsequently upgraded and expanded into a pilot scale Urban Malaria Control Programme with support from national academic institutes. Results Both programmes now access relevant expertise, funding and policy makers while the academic partners benefit from direct experience of community-based implementation and operational research opportunities. The communities now access up-to-date malaria-related knowledge and skills for translation into local action. Similarly, the academic partners have acquired better understanding of community needs and how to address them. Conclusion Until sufficient evidence is provided, community-based IVM remains an operational research activity. Researchers can never directly support every community in Africa so community-based IVM strategies and tactics will need to be incorporated into undergraduate teaching programmes to generate sufficient numbers of practitioners for national scale programmes. Academic ecologists at African institutions are uniquely positioned to enable the application of practical environmental and entomological skills for malaria control by communities at grassroots level and should be supported to fulfil this neglected role. PMID:16457724

Provider Perspectives on Evidence-Based HIV Prevention Interventions: Barriers and Facilitators to Implementation

PubMed Central

Dickson-Gomez, Julia

2011-01-01

Abstract Since the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, community-based organizations (CBOs) have been key players in combating this disease through grassroots prevention programs and close ties to at-risk populations. Increasingly, both funding agencies and public health institutions require that CBOs implement evidence-based HIV prevention interventions, most of which are researcher developed. However, after completing training for these evidence-based interventions (EBIs), agencies may either abandon plans to implement them or significantly modify the intervention. Based on 22 semistructured interviews with HIV prevention service providers, this article explores the barriers and facilitators to dissemination and implementation of EBIs included in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Diffusion of Effective Behavioral Interventions (DEBI) program. Results suggest that there is a tension between the need to implement interventions with fidelity and the lack of guidance on how to adapt the interventions for their constituencies and organizational contexts. Findings suggest the need for HIV prevention intervention development and dissemination that integrate community partners in all phases of research and dissemination. PMID:21323564

ACHP | News

Science.gov Websites

Great Benefits for Nation's Communities WASHINGTON, D.C. - Leading national experts discussed how American Historic Places: Breathing New Life into Our Communities," the session highlighted how a and how historic preservation offers a locally based, grassroots opportunity to improve the nation's

Computers for Political Change: PeaceNet and Public Data Access.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Downing, John D. H.

1989-01-01

Describes two computer communication projects: PeaceNet, devoted to peace issues; and Public Data Access, devoted to making U.S. government information more broadly available. Discusses the potential of new technology (computer communication) for grass-roots political movements. (SR)

Historic bridges : bridging the gap between safety concerns and historic preservation.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1996-01-01

Historic preservation legislation and grassroots efforts promoting preservation have grown over the years both in scope and in the amount of resources pledged to the cause. Among the beneficiaries of these endeavors are historic bridges, which once l...

Explaining Michigan: developing an ex post theory of a quality improvement program.

PubMed

Dixon-Woods, Mary; Bosk, Charles L; Aveling, Emma Louise; Goeschel, Christine A; Pronovost, Peter J

2011-06-01

Understanding how and why programs work-not simply whether they work-is crucial. Good theory is indispensable to advancing the science of improvement. We argue for the usefulness of ex post theorization of programs. We propose an approach, located within the broad family of theory-oriented methods, for developing ex post theories of interventional programs. We use this approach to develop an ex post theory of the Michigan Intensive Care Unit (ICU) project, which attracted international attention by successfully reducing rates of central venous catheter bloodstream infections (CVC-BSIs). The procedure used to develop the ex post theory was (1) identify program leaders' initial theory of change and learning from running the program; (2) enhance this with new information in the form of theoretical contributions from social scientists; (3) synthesize prior and new information to produce an updated theory. The Michigan project achieved its effects by (1) generating isomorphic pressures for ICUs to join the program and conform to its requirements; (2) creating a densely networked community with strong horizontal links that exerted normative pressures on members; (3) reframing CVC-BSIs as a social problem and addressing it through a professional movement combining "grassroots" features with a vertically integrating program structure; (4) using several interventions that functioned in different ways to shape a culture of commitment to doing better in practice; (5) harnessing data on infection rates as a disciplinary force; and (6) using "hard edges." Updating program theory in the light of experience from program implementation is essential to improving programs' generalizability and transferability, although it is not a substitute for concurrent evaluative fieldwork. Future iterations of programs based on the Michigan project, and improvement science more generally, may benefit from the updated theory present here. © 2011 Milbank Memorial Fund. Published by Wiley Periodicals Inc.

Community Development in the Third World in the 1990s. Review Article.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oakley, Peter

1998-01-01

Reviews eight books: "Autonomous Development" (R. Carmen); "Community Power and Grassroots Democracy" (M. Kaufman, H. Alfonso); "Questioning Empowerment" (J. Rowlands); "Seeking a Balance" (A. Fowler); "Funding Community Initiatives" (S. Arrossi et al.); "Whose Voice?" (J. Holland, J.…

Quick wins connected vehicles deployment scenario : a grassroots approach to safer roads, greater mobility, and cleaner air.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-01-01

The Quick Wins Connected Vehicles deployment scenario provides stakeholders from planners, to operators, to manufacturers, to policymakers with a defensible path towards the deployment of Connected Vehicles technologies over the next half-dec...

Tuskegee, Alabama: The Politics of Illusion in the New South

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marable, Manning

1977-01-01

Concludes that when and if a coalition of rural working people and students coalesce around a black, grassroots agenda, a new political history will begin for Tuskegee, for Macon County and perhaps for the entire "Black Belt South". (Author/AM)

Special Issue: Productive Employment for the Poor.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gaude, Jacques, Ed.; Miller, Steven, Ed.

1992-01-01

This special issue contains nine articles on labor-intensive public works, social investment funds, rural infrastructure projects, grassroots socioeconomic rights, remuneration systems for self-help projects, road construction and rural transport, employment and environmental rehabilitation, and water as a source of employment. (SK)

Measuring Charter School Efficiency: An Early Appraisal

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carpenter, Dick M., II; Noller, Scott L.

2010-01-01

In an era of increased accountability and challenging times for public finance, charter schools built on decentralization, grassroots accountability, and market forces may provide, in the spirit of "educational laboratories," lessons for increasing student achievement more efficiently through diverse and innovative management,…

Modular Manufacturing Simulator Users Manual

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1997-01-01

Since the agency was established in 1958, a key part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's mission has been to make technologies available to American industry so it can be more widely used by the citizens who paid for it. While many people might think that 'rocket science' has no application to earthly problems, rocket science in fact employs earthly materials, processes, and designs adapted for space, and which can be adapted for other purposes on Earth. Marshall Space Flight Center's Technology Transfer Office has outreach programs designed to connect American business, industries, educational institutions, and individuals who have needs, with NASA people and laboratories who may have the solutions. MSFC's national goal is to enhance America's competitiveness in the world marketplace and ensure that the technological breakthroughs by American laboratories benefit taxpayers and the many industries making up our Nation's industrial base. Activities may range from simple exchanges of technical data to Space Act Agreements which lead to NASA and industry working closely together to solve a problem. The goal is to ensure that America gains and maintains its proper place of leadership among the world's technologically developed nations. Some of the many technologies transferred from NASA to commercial customers include those associated with: Welding and fabrication; Medical and pharmaceutical uses; Fuels and coatings; Structural composites and Robotics. These activities are aimed to achieve the same goal: slowing, halting, and gradually reversing the erosion of American technological leadership. Legislation such as the National Technology Initiative starts at the top and works down through the national corporate structure, while MSFC's activities start at the grassroots level and work up through the small and medium-sized business which form the bulk of our industrial community.

Checkerspot Butterflies, Science, and Conservation Policy: A Grassroots View of Nitrogen Overdose

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weiss, S. B.

2009-12-01

Educating policy makers and the general public about the global “Nitrogen Overdose” has proved challenging because of the complexities of the global nitrogen cycle and its effect on terrestrial, freshwater, estuarine, and marine ecosystems. In this presentation, I present my grassroots experience as a scientist who transitioned into a scientist/activist, working with elected officials, regulators, private industry, activist groups, and the general public, to conserve the rare, beautiful, and charismatic Bay checkerspot butterfly in the San Francisco Bay Area. The butterfly is threatened by atmospheric nitrogen deposition (5-20 kg-N/ha/year) that enriches nutrient poor soils derived from serpentinite rock. This eutrophication allows nitrophilous grasses to invade and displace the dazzling wildflower displays that provide essential food and nectar for the butterfly. Over the past 25 years, I have been involved in all phases of the conservation of this ecosystem, drawing on long-term scientific investigations (literally hundreds of papers by dozens of researchers) on the population dynamics and conservation of the butterfly, and the biogeochemistry of the serpentine grassland ecosystem. Publication of a 1999 paper on N-deposition impacts on the butterfly led to consultations with government agencies and a powerplant company, and development of precedent setting N-deposition mitigation through habitat acquisition and grazing management. This process has evolved into a regional-scale Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) that is nearing completion in 2010. A key to the success of this ongoing endeavor is education about biodiversity and N-deposition. Field-tours during spring wildflower season put diverse groups of people in direct contact with the obvious beauty of the ecosystem, creating an opening to learning about the complexities of N-deposition, the population biology of the butterfly, and the convoluted conservation history of the sites. Informal tours have developed into a docent program that led more than 1500 people to the site over the past 4 years, including targeted tours for elected officials, decision makers, land managers, and scientists. Outreach has also included more than a dozen articles in local, regional, and national press, television spots, public presentations (Kiwanis, garden clubs, local conferences), and behind the scenes work in policy development for the HCP. When political decisions on the HCP are finalized in the next year, there will be a cadre of educated people, motivated by first hand experience with the ecosystem, to support final approval and implementation of a rigorous plan that will secure the butterfly, numerous imperiled plants, and the entire flower-filled ecosystem. The experience provides a case study and model of how effective grassroots action by concerned scientists can make a difference.

Phased in smoke-free workplace laws: impact in grass-roots pubs and clubs in South Australia.

PubMed

Miller, Caroline L; Hickling, Jacqueline A

2007-04-01

Smoke-free workplace laws with phase-in provisions for licensed bar and gaming venues are being rolled-out across Australia. This study investigates grass-roots industry reactions after the first phase of implementation in South Australia and compares them with views of patrons who smoke. Two surveys were conducted with bar and club managers of randomly selected licensed venues in South Australia. The first survey (baseline) was conducted in November 2004 (n=500; by telephone). The second survey (phase 1) was conducted in May 2005 (n=357; in person including site inspection). Community support was assessed in a telephone survey conducted in 2005 (n=2,004). In 2005, more than half supported the smoking bans planned for 2007 and up to 75% supported the phase-in provisions (for 2005-07). By 2005, 90.7% recognised it was important to provide a smoke-free environment for staff, but one-third were under the mistaken impression that phase-in measures offered health protection. Attempted compliance was very high and, for most, not an effort or financial burden. Verified compliance was fair, although lower than self-report due to confusion about rules for smoking and non-smoking areas. When the views of bar and club managers were compared with community views, collected in a separate survey, it was found that bar and club managers substantially under-estimated community support for impending total smoke-free laws, due in November 2007. Grass-roots industry support for smoke-free laws is considerable and higher than industry comments might imply, but somewhat lesser than community support. Attempted compliance is fair, despite confusion about details.

A Grassroots Remote Sensing Toolkit Using Live Coding, Smartphones, Kites and Lightweight Drones

PubMed Central

Anderson, K.; Griffiths, D.; DeBell, L.; Hancock, S.; Duffy, J. P.; Shutler, J. D.; Reinhardt, W. J.; Griffiths, A.

2016-01-01

This manuscript describes the development of an android-based smartphone application for capturing aerial photographs and spatial metadata automatically, for use in grassroots mapping applications. The aim of the project was to exploit the plethora of on-board sensors within modern smartphones (accelerometer, GPS, compass, camera) to generate ready-to-use spatial data from lightweight aerial platforms such as drones or kites. A visual coding ‘scheme blocks’ framework was used to build the application (‘app’), so that users could customise their own data capture tools in the field. The paper reports on the coding framework, then shows the results of test flights from kites and lightweight drones and finally shows how open-source geospatial toolkits were used to generate geographical information system (GIS)-ready GeoTIFF images from the metadata stored by the app. Two Android smartphones were used in testing–a high specification OnePlus One handset and a lower cost Acer Liquid Z3 handset, to test the operational limits of the app on phones with different sensor sets. We demonstrate that best results were obtained when the phone was attached to a stable single line kite or to a gliding drone. Results show that engine or motor vibrations from powered aircraft required dampening to ensure capture of high quality images. We demonstrate how the products generated from the open-source processing workflow are easily used in GIS. The app can be downloaded freely from the Google store by searching for ‘UAV toolkit’ (UAV toolkit 2016), and used wherever an Android smartphone and aerial platform are available to deliver rapid spatial data (e.g. in supporting decision-making in humanitarian disaster-relief zones, in teaching or for grassroots remote sensing and democratic mapping). PMID:27144310

A Grassroots Remote Sensing Toolkit Using Live Coding, Smartphones, Kites and Lightweight Drones.

PubMed

Anderson, K; Griffiths, D; DeBell, L; Hancock, S; Duffy, J P; Shutler, J D; Reinhardt, W J; Griffiths, A

2016-01-01

This manuscript describes the development of an android-based smartphone application for capturing aerial photographs and spatial metadata automatically, for use in grassroots mapping applications. The aim of the project was to exploit the plethora of on-board sensors within modern smartphones (accelerometer, GPS, compass, camera) to generate ready-to-use spatial data from lightweight aerial platforms such as drones or kites. A visual coding 'scheme blocks' framework was used to build the application ('app'), so that users could customise their own data capture tools in the field. The paper reports on the coding framework, then shows the results of test flights from kites and lightweight drones and finally shows how open-source geospatial toolkits were used to generate geographical information system (GIS)-ready GeoTIFF images from the metadata stored by the app. Two Android smartphones were used in testing-a high specification OnePlus One handset and a lower cost Acer Liquid Z3 handset, to test the operational limits of the app on phones with different sensor sets. We demonstrate that best results were obtained when the phone was attached to a stable single line kite or to a gliding drone. Results show that engine or motor vibrations from powered aircraft required dampening to ensure capture of high quality images. We demonstrate how the products generated from the open-source processing workflow are easily used in GIS. The app can be downloaded freely from the Google store by searching for 'UAV toolkit' (UAV toolkit 2016), and used wherever an Android smartphone and aerial platform are available to deliver rapid spatial data (e.g. in supporting decision-making in humanitarian disaster-relief zones, in teaching or for grassroots remote sensing and democratic mapping).

Changing social policy: Grassroots to legislation.

PubMed

Lemiska, Liz; McCann, Eileen M; Mancuso, Margaret

2002-05-01

Health care in the United States has evolved into a multimillion dollar business. As the health care industry has grown, so too has government regulation and involvement. As both insurers and patients vie to get the most for their health care dollars, federal and state governments attempt to mediate, prevent fraud and abuse, and protect all parties involved. Consumers feel the effects of this "tug of war" in the form of higher copayments, premiums, and out-of-pocket costs, as well as denial of coverage. This denial of coverage sparked a very successful grassroots effort to stop commercial insurers in the state of Connecticut from defining ostomy supplies as cosmetic and thus denying reimbursement. A tremendous amount of collaboration between Connecticut WOC nurses, state legislators, local American Cancer Society advocates, United Ostomy Association chapter members, and health care providers resulted in a powerful mobilization and support for House Bill No. 5120. This bill went beyond defining ostomy supplies as medically necessary but also set a minimum rate for reimbursement. Social policy changed, improving the lives of Connecticut citizens with an ostomy. Although many people fear they do not have the power to make necessary changes in government, this experience proved otherwise. The collaboration that occurred was patient advocacy at its best. This article describes the process that allowed this successful collaboration to take place with the hope that others will be inspired to get involved with patient advocacy through political involvement. It is the intention of this work to capture the essence of dedication of a grassroots campaign involving a small group of well-organized, highly focused participants who were responsible for changing public health care policy in the state of Connecticut.

Cultivating a Global Pool of Future Geoscientists and Mentors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sparrow, E. B.; Yule, S.; Murphy, A.; Fenzel, M.; Buali, S.; Bourgeault, J.; Tunkl, T.; Lawani, Y.; Elwan, M.; Ruairuen, W.; Altin, L.; Boonkhot, P.

2015-12-01

The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) program ( www.globe.gov) is an international science and education program in over 28,000 schools in 114 countries. GLOBE students conduct real science - ask questions, make observations, do measurements, analyze data, and participate in research collaborations with other students and Earth scientists. In the U.S., GLOBE operates through a GLOBE Implementation Office and partnerships with U.S. organizations that recruit schools, train teachers at professional development workshops, and mentor teachers and their students to engage in GLOBE learning and research activities. Internationally, GLOBE is implemented through bilateral agreements between the U.S. government and those of partner countries that provide the structure and funding to fulfill the responsibilities and functions of a GLOBE Partnership. GLOBE students have contributed more than 129 million measurements to ongoing science investigations. GLOBE, in its 20th year, has been successful in engaging students in Earth as a system and environmental science studies during K-12 schooling and beyond as students go into college and in their careers. GLOBE Alumni is a grassroots community of former GLOBE students committed to continue GLOBE activities at a higher level. They have worked with GLOBE in Estonia, Czech Republic, Benin, Thailand and Peru, to support teachers and students in student scientific research to better understand the Earth as a system and the environment. Survey results of participants at the 2014 GLOBE Learning Expedition indicate that 53% of GLOBE students would likely choose GLOBE involvement beyond secondary school, 80 % of teachers are likely to engage former GLOBE students as near-peer mentors to their students, 70% of GLOBE Partners are likely to use the assistance of former GLOBE students when training teachers and 100% of GLOBE Partners and teachers consider former GLOBE students who may be in college or graduated, valuable as research mentors to their GLOBE students. Scientists asked how valuable they think GLOBE alumni can be to a GLOBE-wide student collaborative scientific research project; all responded in the affirmative with one scientist saying "Extremely valuable, one of the best things that happened proving the value of the program".

Career Development and Learning Pathways of Paralympic Coaches With a Disability.

PubMed

Douglas, Scott; Falcão, William R; Bloom, Gordon A

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the career development and learning pathways of Paralympic head coaches who previously competed as Paralympic athletes. Each coach participated in a semistructured interview. A thematic analysis of the data revealed three higher order themes, which were called becoming a coach, learning to coach, and lifelong learning and teaching. Across these themes, participants discussed interactions with other coaches and athletes with a disability, learning from mentors and coaching clinics, as well as limited formal educational opportunities they experienced transitioning from athlete to head coach. The findings revealed that they acquired most of their knowledge from a combination of knowledge gained as athletes and informal sources, including trial and error. They also stressed the need for enhanced recruiting of parasport coaches and parasport coach education opportunities that would enhance programs for athletes with physical disabilities, from grassroots to Paralympic levels.

Extending Cancer Prevention to Improve Fruit and Vegetable Consumption

PubMed Central

Freedman, Darcy A.; Peña-Purcell, Ninfa; Friedman, Daniela B.; Ory, Marcia; Flocke, Susan; Barni, Marie T.; Hébert, James R.

2014-01-01

Consuming a diet that is rich in fruits and vegetables is critical for preventing cancer and cancer-related disparities. Food systems approaches that increase spatial-temporal, economic, and social access to fruits and vegetables may ultimately result in improved consumption patterns among Americans. Engaging the triad of Cooperative Extension Services, public health systems, and community health centers may yield maximal public health benefits from food systems interventions. These entities have a mutual interest in promoting health equity and community and economic vitality that provides common ground to (a) implement solutions through the dissemination of evidence-based programs and (b) share resources to foster grassroots support for sustained change. Working together, these systems have an unprecedented opportunity to build on their common ground to implement, evaluate, and disseminate evidence-based food systems interventions in communities and with populations experiencing disparate risk for cancer and cancer-related diseases. PMID:24748060

Environment, advocacy, and community participation: MOPAWI in Honduras.

PubMed

Brehm, V M

2000-02-01

This paper analyzes the work of Mosquitia Pawisa (MOPAWI) in relation to the development of its strategic linkages among the grassroots, the state, and ultimately the international level of politics in practice. Over the years, MOPAWI has developed a large and complex program addressing many aspects of development in La Mosquitia. Working strategically at two levels, MOPAWI has endeavored to change government policy for the region through continued lobbying and advocacy. It has also worked alongside with local communities to find ways of improving livelihoods without harming the environment. The key strength of the MOPAWI work has been the high level of community participation and mobilization by managing their own development in a time of profound change. Overall, the experience of MOPAWI suggests that nongovernmental organizations can play a strategic role in obtaining environmental protection, government recognition of ethnic diversity, and rights for indigenous people.

Productivity improvement in engineering at Rocketdyne

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nordlund, R. M.; Vogt, S. T.; Woo, A. K.

1985-01-01

The Rocketdyne Division of Rockwell International has embarked on a productivity improvement program in engineering. This effort included participation in the White Collar Productivity Improvement (WCPI) project sponsored by the American Productivity Center. A number of things have been learned through this project. It seems that any productivity improvement project should be employee driven. The Rocketdyne project was essentially started as a result of a grassroots effort to remove some particular hindrances, and employee enthusiasm was a prime factor in the continuing progress of the effort. A significant result was that awareness of problems at all levels increased. Many issues surfaced in the diagnostic phase, and were then noted and discussed. This process added legitimacy to issues that had previously been merely unspoken concerns. The initial feelings of many members of the pilot group was that significant changes would occur relatively quickly. It is now recognized that this will have to be an ongoing, long-term effort.

Preventing adolescent suicide: a community takes action.

PubMed

Pirruccello, Linda M

2010-05-01

Suicide is the third leading cause of death for adolescents and young people in the United States. The etiology of suicide in this population has eluded policy makers, researchers, and communities. Although many suicide prevention programs have been developed and implemented, few are evidence-based in their effectiveness in decreasing suicide rates. In one northern California community, adolescent suicide has risen above the state's average. Two nurses led an effort to develop and implement an innovative grassroots community suicide prevention project targeted at eliminating any further teen suicide. The project consisted of a Teen Resource Card, a community resource brochure targeted at teens, and education for the public and school officials to raise awareness about this issue. This article describes this project for other communities to use as a model. Risk and protective factors are described, and a comprehensive background of adolescent suicide is provided.

Gender, age, and exclusion: a challenge to community organisations in Lima, Peru.

PubMed

Clark, F C; Laurie, N

2000-07-01

This article examines the role of two successful grassroots women's organizations in empowering women in old age in Lima, Peru. These organizations include Comedores Populares (soup kitchens) and the Vaso de Leche (glass of milk) Program. The primary goal of both groups is poverty alleviation, specifically through improved nutrition. Through them, women have lobbied on issues such as provision of education and health services, and campaigned against the guerrilla insurgency of the 1980s and the early 1990s. However, evidence from three low-income settlements on the outskirts of Lima implied that no long-term support is available from these organizations to promote the welfare of elderly people. Also, the contribution that elderly members of households make to the work of the organizations is invisible and undervalued. Thus, these findings clearly suggest that even the most successful New Social Movements in Lima are also passive members of society in need of charity.

Association of school performance indicators with implementation of the healthy kids, smart kids programme: case study.

PubMed

Nansel, Tonja R; Huang, Terry T K; Rovner, Alisha J; Sanders-Butler, Yvonne

2010-01-01

The purpose of the present analysis was to examine secular trends in school performance indicators in relationship to the implementation of a programme targeting the school food and physical activity environment. Data on available school performance indicators were obtained; retrospective analyses were conducted to assess trends in indicators in association with programme implementation; each outcome was regressed v. year, beginning with the year prior to programme implementation. The Healthy Kids, Smart Kids programme, a grass-roots effort to enhance the school food and physical activity environment in the Browns Mill Elementary School in Georgia. Data included publicly available school records from the years 1995 to 2006. The number of nurse, counselling and disciplinary referrals per 100 students demonstrated a downward trend, while standardized test scores demonstrated an upward trend beginning in the year of programme implementation. School year was a significant predictor of all indicators. Promoting nutrition and physical activity within the school environment may be a promising approach for enhancing both student health and educational outcomes.

Micro enterprise initiative in water sector and poverty reduction .

PubMed

Jose, T K

2003-01-01

The author reports on the Kerala model for water sector development, broadly adopted as a role model for poverty reduction and build up of social capital. It is a community based organisation with its focus on facilitating a stable income to the poor, and composed of a People's Plan Campaign, the Kudumbashree (women-based poverty eradication programme), with grassroot level neighbourhood groups, federated into an area development society. It promotes savings and credit channelling, capacity building and entrepreneurship development. Activities include awareness raising on water conservation and hygiene, utilization of student power, promotion of small, cheap and low technology projects that people can understand and undertake (small reservoirs, tanks, rainwater harvesting structures, water meters), as well as microenterprises, and training of women-based repair groups.

Rinderpest eradication: appropriate technology and social innovations.

PubMed

Mariner, Jeffrey C; House, James A; Mebus, Charles A; Sollod, Albert E; Chibeu, Dickens; Jones, Bryony A; Roeder, Peter L; Admassu, Berhanu; van 't Klooster, Gijs G M

2012-09-14

Rinderpest is only the second infectious disease to have been globally eradicated. In the final stages of eradication, the virus was entrenched in pastoral areas of the Greater Horn of Africa, a region with weak governance, poor security, and little infrastructure that presented profound challenges to conventional control methods. Although the eradication process was a development activity rather than scientific research, its success owed much to several seminal research efforts in vaccine development and epidemiology and showed what scientific decision-making and management could accomplish with limited resources. The keys to success were the development of a thermostable vaccine and the application of participatory epidemiological techniques that allowed veterinary personnel to interact at a grassroots level with cattle herders to more effectively target control measures.

Automated Sequence Processor: Something Old, Something New

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Streiffert, Barbara; Schrock, Mitchell; Fisher, Forest; Himes, Terry

2012-01-01

High productivity required for operations teams to meet schedules Risk must be minimized. Scripting used to automate processes. Scripts perform essential operations functions. Automated Sequence Processor (ASP) was a grass-roots task built to automate the command uplink process System engineering task for ASP revitalization organized. ASP is a set of approximately 200 scripts written in Perl, C Shell, AWK and other scripting languages.. ASP processes/checks/packages non-interactive commands automatically.. Non-interactive commands are guaranteed to be safe and have been checked by hardware or software simulators.. ASP checks that commands are non-interactive.. ASP processes the commands through a command. simulator and then packages them if there are no errors.. ASP must be active 24 hours/day, 7 days/week..

Animating Grassroots Development: Women's Popular Education in Bolivia.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Healy, Kevin

1991-01-01

Describes Capacitacion Integral de la Mujer Campesina (CIMCA) development efforts within Bolivian farm communities. Describes CIMCA's focus on social change, ethnic empowerment, and women's rights. Describes organization's initial clashes with rural culture. Describes use of rotafolio drawings to spark workshop discussions, to improve women's…

Education and the New Right.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, J. Charles

Ultra-conservatives calling themselves the "new right" have made recent gains because of grass-roots interest in issues such as blocking gun control legislation, stopping the Equal Rights Amendment, lowering taxes, and promoting religious fundamentalism. These gains raise serious questions about the future of American education. If a…

77 FR 14347 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; NOAA Restoration Center Performance Progress...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-03-09

... Collection; Comment Request; NOAA Restoration Center Performance Progress Report AGENCY: National Oceanic and... is for an extension of a currently approved information collection. NOAA funds habitat restoration projects including grass-roots, community-based habitat restoration; debris prevention and removal; removal...

All in the Family: The Sister Study

MedlinePlus

... cohort of women. We are committed to enrolling women from all backgrounds, occupations, races, ethnicities and regions. Dr. Anna Nápoles-Springer, ... at the grassroots level, to enroll ethnic minority women, since historically we ... in research," says Dr. Nápoles-Springer. "Only by participating can ...

The Other Open University, Part 2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gross, Ronald

1978-01-01

Presented is the second of a two-part study that describes how some colleges have been joining together in a grassroots cooperative movement to buy, make use of, and shape telecourses. The experiences of two such consortia used by colleges are among the topics discussed. (JMD)

Grassroots Technological Resistance: The People's Power Project and the Impossible Dream of Wireless Transmission of Energy.

PubMed

Schmidt, Pete

2017-09-01

In 1972, the Minnesota United Power Association (UPA) teamed up with the Minnesota Cooperative Power Association (CPA) to initiate an electrification project designed to bring power from North Dakota to the Twin Cities area. A significant backlash and protest began once farmers across the state became aware of the plan and the potential impending land seizure. In the midst of these actions, one group sought to create an alternative to the power line transmission system by designing a system of wireless energy transmission based on the plans of Nikola Tesla. This self-funded conglomeration of farmers and amateur researchers formed the People's Power Project (PPP) and set about building Tesla's system for the wireless transmission of energy. Using archival documents, this paper recounts this episode and argues that, in this case, the potential for successful grassroots action was derailed by the influence of longstanding myths about Tesla and his devices. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Lobbying and advocacy for the public's health: what are the limits for nonprofit organizations?

PubMed

Vernick, J S

1999-09-01

Nonprofit organizations play an important role in advocating for the public's health in the United States. This article describes the rules under US law for lobbying by nonprofit organizations. The 2 most common kinds of non-profits working to improve the public's health are "public charities" and "social welfare organizations." Although social welfare organizations may engage in relatively unlimited lobbying, public charities may not engage in "substantial" lobbying. Lobbying is divided into 2 main categories. Direct lobbying refers to communications with law-makers that take a position on specific legislation, and grassroots lobbying includes attempts to persuade members of the general public to take action regarding legislation. Even public charities may engage in some direct lobbying and a smaller amount of grassroots lobbying. Much public health advocacy, however, is not lobbying, since there are several important exceptions to the lobbying rules. These exceptions include "non-partisan analysis, study, or research" and discussions of broad social problems. Lobbying with federal or earmarked foundation funds is generally prohibited.

The Framing of Women and Health Disparities: A Critical Look at Race, Gender, and Class from the Perspectives of Grassroots Health Communicators.

PubMed

Vardeman-Winter, Jennifer

2017-05-01

As women's health has received significant political and media attention recently, I proposed an expanded structural theory of women's communication about health. Women's health communication and critical race and systemic racism research framed this study. I interviewed 15 communicators and community health workers from grass-roots organizations focused on women's health to learn of their challenges of communicating with women from communities experiencing health disparities. Findings suggest that communicators face difficulties in developing meaningful messaging for publics because of disjunctures between medical and community frames, issues in searching for health among women's many priorities, Whiteness discourses imposed on publics' experiences, and practices of correcting for power differentials. A structural theory of women's health communication, then, consists of tenets around geographic, research/funding, academic/industry, and social hierarchies. Six frames suggesting racial biases about women and health disparities are also defined. This study also includes practical solutions in education, publishing, and policy change for addressing structural challenges.

Gendered vulnerabilities and grassroots adaptation initiatives in home gardens and small orchards in Northwest Mexico.

PubMed

Buechler, Stephanie

2016-12-01

With the retreat of the state under neoliberalism, the lack of (or negligible) government and non-governmental support reasserts grassroots initiatives as a global-change strategy. A feminist political ecology approach and the concept of adverse inclusion were used to facilitate an analysis of social differences shaping local-level adaptive responses. Adaptive responses of small farmers in the border village of San Ignacio, Sonora, Mexico, who are increasingly vulnerable to climate change, water scarcity, and changing labor markets were studied. Gender differences in production sites translate into diverse vulnerabilities and adaptive strategies. Local capacities and initiatives should be a focus of research and policy to avoid viewing women and men as passive in the face of global change. The dynamic strategies of San Ignacio women and men in home gardens and small orchards hold lessons for other regions particularly related to adaptation to climate change via agrobiodiversity, water resource management, and diversified agricultural livelihoods.

Tobacco control and direct democracy in Dade County, Florida: future implications for health advocates.

PubMed

Givel, M S; Glantz, S A

2000-01-01

In 1979 and 1980 in Dade County, Florida, a small grassroots advocacy group, Group Against Smoking Pollution (GASP), attempted to enact a clean indoor air ordinance through the initiative process. The tobacco industry's successful efforts to defeat the initiatives were expensive high-tech media-centered campaigns. Even though GASP's electoral resources were extremely limited for both initiatives, GASP utilized similar media-centered tactics. This approach attempted to defeat the tobacco industry in its own venue, in spite of the tobacco industry's vastly greater resources. Nevertheless, the industry defeated these ordinances by narrow margins because of broad voter support for the initiatives before the industry started its campaigns. Health advocates will never have the resources to match the tobacco industry in expensive high-tech media-centered initiative campaigns. Rather, their power lies in the general popularity of tobacco control legislation and their ability to mobilize broad grassroots efforts combined with an adequately funded media campaign.

Grass-Roots Leadership in Appalachia: A Contradiction in Terms?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salstrom, Paul

1991-01-01

The cultural values of rural Appalachia have been antithetical to the explicit leadership needed in activist movements for social change. "Subsistence, barter, and borrow" economic systems, pervasive in Appalachia, are based on nonmonetary, voluntary reciprocity within dense insider networks, not the formal contracts of both capitalist…

Standards, Title I Link Scrutinized

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Klein, Alyson

2010-01-01

The Obama administration's proposal to make federal funding for disadvantaged students contingent on states' adoption of reading and math standards intended to prepare students for college or a career has drawn sharp criticism from groups representing grassroots educators and state lawmakers, even as some governors and members of Congress appear…

Advocating for Student Health through Grassroots Curricular Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barcelona, Jeanne M.; Goetten, Julia

2018-01-01

One strategy for creating a healthy school culture is to integrate health concepts into core subject areas. In this article, a health and wellness coordinator and a curriculum specialist explain the meticulous process and discoveries that led to the development of a district-specific health curriculum.

Women, Class, and School Reform.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mickelson, Roslyn Arlin; Wadsworth, Angela L.

1996-01-01

Analyzes ordinary women's role in shaping school reform in their community, highlighting interplay of class conflict, regionalism, and gender roles in reform efforts. The women protesting the Odyssey Project framed the debate as a juncture between a national, elitist reform movement and a local grassroots countermovement protecting children,…

Education for Librarianship on the Grassroots Level. Part 2. Papers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

International Federation of Library Associations, The Hague (Netherlands).

Papers on education for librarianship which were presented at a seminar preceding the general conference of IFLA included the following: (1) "Necessite des Services--Quel Niveau de Competences et de Qualifications et Quelles Structures Administratives Sont Necessaires pour Faire Fonctionner les Services?" (Library Service…

Fault Lines in New Labour's Education Project: Points for Intervention and Resistance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coles, Jane

2006-01-01

This article argues that New Labour's third term education policies are riddled with internal contradictions. The author explores key tension points and suggests that fractures might be opened up where the government is most vulnerable to critical scrutiny and interventions by grassroots resistance.

Determinants of Computer Utilization by Extension Personnel: A Structural Equations Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sivakumar, Paramasivan Sethuraman; Parasar, Bibudha; Das, Raghu Nath; Anantharaman, Mathevanpillai

2014-01-01

Purpose: Information technology (IT) has tremendous potential for fostering grassroots development and the Indian government has created various capital-intensive computer networks to promote agricultural development. However, research studies have shown that information technology investments are not always translated into productivity gains due…

The Grassroots Public/Private Toll Movement - The Lake of the Ozarks Community Bridge

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1999-01-01

From the 1930's through the 1960's, most of the toll-financed transportation : facilities in the U.S. were large, statewide initiatives, such as the New Jersey, : Massachusetts, and Kansas Turnpikes. When the toll movement was reborn in the : form of...

Volatility and Growth in Populations of Rural Associations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wollebaek, Dag

2010-01-01

This article uses unique community-level data aggregated from censuses of associations to analyze growth and volatility in rural populations of grassroots associations. A qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) shows that the two main paths to growth were (1) centralization in polycephalous (multicentered) municipalities and (2) population growth…

Communities of Purpose

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stukes, Felesia

2016-01-01

Communities of Purpose are commonly known to enact their purposes through social movements, grassroots efforts, semi-formal groups, and through organizations in the voluntary sector. They carry out charitable missions and goals and are often committed to the pursuit of social welfare and social change. In this research, I explain why Communities…

Pipe dream? Envisioning a grassroots Python ecosystem of open, common software tools and data access in support of river and coastal biogeochemical research (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayorga, E.

2013-12-01

Practical, problem oriented software developed by scientists and graduate students in domains lacking a strong software development tradition is often balkanized into the scripting environments provided by dominant, typically proprietary tools. In environmental fields, these tools include ArcGIS, Matlab, SAS, Excel and others, and are often constrained to specific operating systems. While this situation is the outcome of rational choices, it limits the dissemination of useful tools and their integration into loosely coupled frameworks that can meet wider needs and be developed organically by groups addressing their own needs. Open-source dynamic languages offer the advantages of an accessible programming syntax, a wealth of pre-existing libraries, multi-platform access, linkage to community libraries developed in lower level languages such as C or FORTRAN, and access to web service infrastructure. Python in particular has seen a large and increasing uptake in scientific communities, as evidenced by the continued growth of the annual SciPy conference. Ecosystems with distinctive physical structures and organization, and mechanistic processes that are well characterized, are both factors that have often led to the grass-roots development of useful code meeting the needs of a range of communities. In aquatic applications, examples include river and watershed analysis tools (River Tools, Taudem, etc), and geochemical modules such as CO2SYS, PHREEQ and LOADEST. I will review the state of affairs and explore the potential offered by a Python tool ecosystem in supporting aquatic biogeochemistry and water quality research. This potential is multi-faceted and broadly involves accessibility to lone grad students, access to a wide community of programmers and problem solvers via online resources such as StackExchange, and opportunities to leverage broader cyberinfrastructure efforts and tools, including those from widely different domains. Collaborative development of such tools can provide the additional advantage of enhancing cohesion and communication across specific research areas, and reducing research obstacles in a range of disciplines.

Tsunami Preparedness: Building On Past Efforts to Reach More People… California and Beyond!

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, K.; Siegel, J.; Pridmore, C. L.; Benthien, M. L.; Wilson, R. I.; Long, K.; Ross, S.

2014-12-01

The California Tsunami Program has continued to build upon past preparedness efforts, carried out year-round, while leveraging government support at all levels during National Tsunami Preparedness Week, the last week of March. A primary goal is for everyone who lives at or visits the coast to understand basic safety measures when responding to official tsunami alerts or natural warnings. In 2014, more so than ever before, many local, coastal jurisdictions conducted grass-roots activities in their areas. When requested, state and federal programs stepped in to contribute subject matter expertise, lessons learned, and support. And, this year, the new website, www.TsunamiZone.org, was developed. With a goal of establishing a baseline for future years, this website builds on the successes of the Great Shakeout Earthquake Drills (www.ShakeOut.org) by allowing people to locate and register for tsunami preparedness events in their area. Additionally, it provides a central location for basic tsunami preparedness information, and links to find out more. The idea is not only to empower people with the best available, vetted, scientifically-based public safety information, but also to provide ways in which individuals can take physical action to educate themselves and others. Several broad categories of preparedness actions include: official acknowledgement of National Tsunami Preparedness Week, local "tsunami walk" drills, simulated tsunami-based exercises, testing of sirens and notification systems, outreach materials (brochures, videos, maps), workshops, presentations, media events, and websites. Next steps include building on the foundation established in 2014 by leveraging ShakeOut audiences, providing people with more information about how they can participate in 2015, and carrying the effort forward to other states and territories.

Privatizing Grassroots Development: Lessons Learned from Artisanal Fishermen in Northern Colombia.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allred, Timothy F.

1998-01-01

Documents the transformation of a subsidized international development project into a for-profit "environmental enterprise," an ecological business run by and for small-scale fishermen on Colombia's Caribbean coast. Demonstrates the need for development projects to become businesses and the critical role of social investments (literacy…

Transparency in Teaching: Faculty Share Data and Improve Students' Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Winkelmes, Mary-Ann

2013-01-01

The Illinois Initiative on Transparency in Learning and Teaching is a grassroots assessment project designed to promote students' conscious understanding of how they learn and to enable faculty to gather, share, and promptly benefit from data about students' learning by coordinating their efforts across disciplines, institutions, and countries.…

A Grassroots Solution to "De Facto" School Segregation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Broderick, Mary

1997-01-01

Connecticut is struggling to address the "de facto" desegregation that finds 80% of the state's minority schoolchildren enrolled in only 18 of its 166 school districts. In 1996, the state's supreme court ruled that Connecticut's two-tiered system was violating these students' rights. Southeastern Connecticut's improvement plan reflects…

GO-FAANG meeting: A gathering on functional annotation of animal genomes

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The FAANG (Functional Annotation of Animal Genomes) Consortium recently held a Gathering On FAANG (GO-FAANG) Workshop in Washington, DC on October 7-8, 2015. This consortium is a grass-roots organization formed to advance the annotation of newly assembled genomes of non-model organisms (www.faang.or...

Masters of the Universe: The Passively Multiplayer Online Game

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harris, Christopher

2008-01-01

The digital age has freed information from the restrictive hierarchies of traditional cataloging methods, notably Dewey. Although libraries still deal with the challenge of physical books, online content is a different matter. Thanks to the unregulated, grassroots cataloging effort known as tagging, the Web presents a glorious chaos of…

On Basic Needs and Modest Media.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gunter, Jock

1978-01-01

The need for grass-roots participation and local control in whatever technology is used to meet basic educational needs is stressed. Successful uses of the audio cassette recorder and the portable half-inch video recorder are described; the 8-mm sound camera and video player are also suggested as viable "modest" technologies. (JEG)

McEducation Marginalized: Multiverse of Learning-Living in Grassroots Commons

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Prakash, Madhu Suri; Stuchul, Dana; Madhu, Suri; Stuchul, Dana

2004-01-01

Fast food explored both as metaphor and social reality help us challenge the assumptions about education as a universal good transformed into a universal human right. Relations between education, development, and "one world" discourses expose the incommensurability of Western liberal ideals with diverse cosmo-visions now flourishing among…

Out of the Shadows: "Testimonio" as Civic Participation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Figueroa, Ariana Mangual

2015-01-01

This article draws from a 23-month ethnographic study of mixed-status families living in an emerging Latino/a community to examine 3 undocumented mothers' participation in the act of giving "testimonio," or testimony. In this context, "testimonio" serves as a grassroots tactic for political advocacy and community formation that…

Reframing Agrarian Citizenship: Land, Life and Power in Brazil

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wittman, Hannah

2009-01-01

This paper investigates the changing relationship between land, citizenship, and power in Brazil, where land-related policies have historically served to situate political and economic rights in the hands of an elite land-owning minority. In response, contemporary grassroots movements in Brazil, including the Landless Rural Workers Movement…

Community Psychology, Planning, and Learning: A U.S. Perspective on Sustainable Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perkins, Douglas D.

An ecological framework for predicting citizen participation in grassroots community organizations and predicting community disorder problems (such as crime and fear) was developed and tested. The framework, which is called an ecological framework for sustainable community learning and development, delineates the relevant economic, political,…

Unschoolers of the World, Unwork! Grassroots Lessons and Strategies against 21st Century Capitalism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jandric, Petar; Taylor, Astra

2016-01-01

This conversation explores unschooling through theory and personal experience of Astra Taylor, who examines deschooling alongside the continua of Freedom/Oppression, Personal Control/Personal Autonomy, Solitude/Boredom, Privilege/Social Reproduction, Socialisation/Democracy. Taylor reveals complex relationships between the main strands of her…

Major Issues in the Design of New Educational Systems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salisbury, David F.

The necessity of design and planning for school restructuring with a macro focus on education systems design is discussed in this paper. Eight support and implementation strategies are identified: utilization of a formal change process; planned coordination; multiple sponsorship; formation of a grassroots collaboration network; external and…

Teaching Macro Practice: An Experiential Learning Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carey, Lois A.

2007-01-01

This paper presents a model for teaching an undergraduate social work macro practice course utilizing an experiential learning paradigm. The model provides a campus-based project with social work majors in simultaneous dual roles of students and grassroots leaders, focusing on rape and sexual assault prevention training for college students. This…

The grassroots reach for the sky

Treesearch

Anne Lusk

1992-01-01

In a light-hearted departure from typical conference proceedings, this paper identifies the need for research related to greenways and attempts to entice the conference scholars into undertaking such studies. Greenways are long, skinny connecting corridors for nature, recreation and transportation which need the attention of academicians and researchers to move into...

California's First Year with Local Control Finance and Accountability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Menefee-Libey, David J.; Kerchner, Charles Taylor

2015-01-01

In 2013, Governor Jerry Brown and the California legislature radically restructured the state's school funding system and accountability systems with a weighted student formula and a mandated local planning process in each district. The new law substitutes local politics and grassroots agency for state-driven mandates and compliance reviews. While…

Supporting Faculty Grassroots Leadership

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kezar, Adrianna; Lester, Jaime

2009-01-01

Various factors are making faculty leadership challenging including the rise in part-time and non-tenure-track faculty, the increasing pressure to publish and teach more courses and adopt new technologies and pedagogies, increasing standards for tenure and promotion, ascension of academic capitalism, and heavy service roles for women and people of…

Information Poverty and the Latino Community: Implications for Social Work Practice and Social Work Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McNutt, John G.; Queiro-Tajalli, Irene; Boland, Katherine M.; Campbell, Craig

2001-01-01

Education level, computer ownership, and technology and information access determine one's status in the new information economy. Interventions such as community computer networks, telecommuting centers, grassroots electronic commerce, and volunteer technology corps can help Latinos and other marginalized groups overcome continued disadvantage.…

Undoing the Past: Restoration in the Monday Creek Watershed.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reed, Mary

2000-01-01

Monday Creek Restoration Project is a collaborative effort of 20 organizations to clean up an Appalachian Ohio stream fouled for generations by acid mine drainage and industrial waste. The grassroots effort has involved state and federal agencies, VISTA volunteers, community volunteers, and college students who monitor the watershed and share…

A Grassroots Effort

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pember, Mary Annette

2007-01-01

If academics, students and supporters at the Newark Earthworks Center at The Ohio State University have their way, the Newark Earthworks will be listed among the likes of England's Stonehenge and Mexico's Teotihuacan in terms of international archaeological and cultural importance. Dr. Richard Shiels, director of the newly founded center and Dr.…

The NGO Sector in Pakistan: Past, Present and Future.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anzar, Uzma

Despite significant developments on the economic front, the Pakistani government's human development efforts have failed to serve the needs of the poor. Whereas the rural poor do not trust government schemes, they do trust nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), most of which are apolitical community-based grassroots organizations accountable to…

Working landscapes: the future of land use policy?

Treesearch

Marc Miller; Thomas E. Sheridan; Susan Charnley; Christy Plumer; Jim Lyons; Tom Martin

2015-01-01

The history of land use in the American West has traditionally been one of conflict, but the divisive relationships between ranchers, foresters, land management agencies, recreational users, and conservationists are transforming. Grassroots coalitions have developed among unlikely allies. Together, they are advocating for management approaches that incorporate local...

An Action-Research Project: Community Lead Poisoning Prevention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rajaram, Shireen S.

2007-01-01

This action-research project focused on gathering data on awareness of lead poisoning, as well as disseminating information on lead poisoning prevention in a metropolitan midwestern city. This project reflects an action-research approach to service learning and was in collaboration with a grass-roots organization. This paper outlines the daunting…

Cooperative Charter Schools: New Enterprises in Instructional Delivery.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Katherine L.; Hentschke, Guilbert C.

A wide variety of charter schools has emerged since the first charter was granted in 1991. Six distinct models include schools managed by grassroots organizations, schools focused on special student populations, schools centered around distance learning or home learning, business-managed schools, schools structured as teacher cooperatives, and…

Information Sharing in a Nonprofit Network

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stoll, Jennifer

2012-01-01

The civil rights and other social justice movements, neighborhood watches, local garden cooperatives, and so forth are examples of a grassroots context that is largely understudied in CSCW. In recent history, movements to fight child sex trafficking, end hunger in New York City, advocate for financial reform, or even overthrow governments have…

It's in Our Hands Now

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, Jane

2010-01-01

The world's political leaders failed to agree a fair, ambitious and legally binding accord that would protect the planet from catastrophic global warming at the United Nations' Copenhagen conference on climate change. This makes grassroots action all the more essential to save the world from devastating climate change. The UK Government championed…

Chemical Dependency Regional Needs Assessment: Northeastern Minnesota.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stone, Marylee

The Minnesota Model of Chemical Dependency Treatment, which evolved from a combination of the grassroots Alcoholics Anonymous movement and the State Mental Health Services in the 1960s has made Minnesota an international leader in chemical dependency treatment efforts. Northeastern Minnesota has shared this reputation with the state. In spite of…

Environmental Journalism in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan: Reporting Scarce amid Environmental and Media Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freedman, Eric

2011-01-01

Independence for the former Soviet republics of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia has not led to press freedom, solutions to pressing environmental problems, or development of effective grassroots nongovernmental organizations. This article examines relations between journalists and environmental nongovernmental organizations, and it…

Teaching Green

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Waters, John K.

2011-01-01

It has been 41 years since the late Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson launched the first nationwide grassroots demonstration on behalf of the environment, known as Earth Day. The event was a national "teach-in" about environmental causes, and it is widely considered the spark that ignited the modern environmental education movement. Within months,…

Strategies for Developing a Positive Parent-School Partnership.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wagonseller, Bill R.

A "grassroots" model for developing a parent-school partnership to help communities achieve the national Education 2000 goals is presented in this paper. The model is based on two assumptions about parenting: (1) parents are responsible for child-rearing; and (2) professionals are responsible for educating parents. Recommendations for a…

Literacy, Knowledge Production, and Grassroots Civil Society: Constructing Critical Responses to Neoliberal Dominance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mein, Erika

2009-01-01

Within the context of neoliberal globalization, portrayals of "literacy" and "knowledge" are increasingly emphasized for their instrumental value for individuals and markets. At the same time, locally situated movements have emerged to challenge, resist, and transform these representations. This article examines a grassroots…

Boulder City 31ers: A Phenomenological Study of a Community-Based History Preservation Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lynch, Arthur T.

2013-01-01

This dissertation used a phenomenological approach in investigating the development of a grassroots community history-based educational outreach and chronicled its development from inception to incorporation into the mission of an established institution. The research questions focused on Deweyan principles of student-centered, experiential…

Learning to Roar

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cowhey, Mary

2009-01-01

In the author's school district, teachers and parents found a way to change the question. "How can their community support the grassroots leadership development and organizing efforts of low income parents and guardians to close the "opportunity gap"?" Together they learned to roar. In 2007, the author and her colleague created Families with…

OER "Produsage" as a Model to Support Language Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacKinnon, Teresa; Pasfield-Neofitou, Sarah

2016-01-01

Language education faculty face myriad challenges in finding teaching resources that are suitable, of high quality, and allow for the modifications needed to meet the requirements of their course contexts and their learners. The article elaborates the grassroots model of "produsage" (a portmanteau of "production" and…

Multiliteracies and Family Language Policy in an Urban Inuit Community

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Patrick, Donna; Budach, Gabriele; Muckpaloo, Igah

2013-01-01

This study investigates the intersection of family language policy with Indigenous multiliteracies and urban Indigeneity. It documents a grassroots Inuit literacy initiative in Ottawa, Canada and considers literacy practices among Inuit at a local Inuit educational centre, where maintaining connections between urban Inuit and their homeland…

Incorporating Multifaceted Mental Health Prevention Services in Community Sectors-of-Care

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gewirtz, Abigail H.; August, Gerald J.

2008-01-01

This article proposes a framework for embedding prevention services into community sectors-of-care. Community sectors-of-care include both formal and grassroot organizations distributed throughout a community that provide various resources and services to at-risk children and their families. Though the child population served by these…

Global Education in Times of Discomfort

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pike, Graham

2013-01-01

The development of global education as a grassroots movement for educational change has always been subject to the influences of prevailing economic and political forces. Perspectives are offered on how the formative years of global education in the United Kingdom and Canada were shaped, including the impacts of controversies and tensions among…

States Eye Looser Rein on Districts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jacobson, Linda

2008-01-01

The push to give school districts greater operating flexibility--a grassroots rallying cry eclipsed in recent years by the charter school movement--is seeing a resurgence, as states seek to spur innovation that will help raise student achievement. In Georgia, Governor Sonny Perdue is proposing "performance contracts" that would free…

To the Cloud! A Grassroots Proposal to Accelerate Brain Science Discovery

PubMed Central

Vogelstein, Joshua T.; Mensh, Brett; Hausser, Michael; Spruston, Nelson; Evans, Alan; Kording, Konrad; Amunts, Katrin; Ebell, Christoph; Muller, Jeff; Telefont, Martin; Hill, Sean; Koushika, Sandhya P.; Cali, Corrado; Valdés-Sosa, Pedro Antonio; Littlewood, Peter; Koch, Christof; Saalfeld, Stephan; Kepecs, Adam; Peng, Hanchuan; Halchenko, Yaroslav O.; Kiar, Gregory; Poo, Mu-Ming; Poline, Jean-Baptiste; Milham, Michael P.; Schaffer, Alyssa Picchini; Gidron, Rafi; Okano, Hideyuki; Calhoun, Vince D; Chun, Miyoung; Kleissas, Dean M.; Vogelstein, R. Jacob; Perlman, Eric; Burns, Randal; Huganir, Richard; Miller, Michael I.

2018-01-01

The revolution in neuroscientific data acquisition is creating an analysis challenge. We propose leveraging cloud-computing technologies to enable large-scale neurodata storing, exploring, analyzing, and modeling. This utility will empower scientists globally to generate and test theories of brain function and dysfunction. PMID:27810005

Creating Highlander Wherever You Are

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Susan; Mullett, Cathy

2016-01-01

Highlander Research and Education Center serves as a catalyst for grassroots organizing and movement building. This article focuses on an interview with education coordinator Susan Williams who has worked at Highlander for 26 years. We discuss how others can and do create powerful popular education experiences anywhere, whether they have a…

A Practical Guide to Political Action: Grassroots and English Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burns, Leslie David

2007-01-01

Leslie David Burns calls teachers to the political forefront, believing that we need to educate our communities about our work by dispelling inaccurate public assumptions about literacy, "best" teaching practices, and accountability standards. He provides teachers with a list of practical steps for "intentional political action" at the grassroots…

The Suburban Press; First Steps toward an Annotated Bibliography. Suburban Press Research Series No. 16 and 17.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Northern Illinois Univ., De Kalb. Suburban Press Research Center.

This bibliography lists journal articles concerning various aspects of the suburban press. Annotated selections, arranged alphabetically according to journal title, are gathered from the following periodicals: "Advertising Age,""Business Week,""Columbia Journalism Review,""Editor and Publisher,""Grassroots Editor,""Journalism…

Mapping a New Field: Cross-Border Professional Development for Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Janelle M.

2011-01-01

Many of the international, supranational, national, and grassroots development organizations working in the field of education channel their efforts into capacity-building for teachers. My research examines the nexus of such international development by US-based organizations with national schooling systems by naming and theorizing this process as…

Create Your Own "Un-Conference"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Demski, Jennifer

2012-01-01

EdCamp is a grassroots movement of do-it-yourself professional development "un-conferences" that originated in Philadelphia in November 2010. In just a little over a year and a half the phenomenon has gained serious momentum across the country and now around the globe. This teacher-driven, bottom-up approach to professional development…

Education, Democracy and Social Change: Venezuela's Education Missions in Theory and Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duffy, Maura

2015-01-01

The "Bolivarian Revolution" in Venezuela is conceptualised as a pedagogical project that aims to develop "twenty-first century Socialism" through state-grassroots collaboration in the reorganisation of political space in order to develop participatory, democratic institutions and processes. The cornerstones of this project to…

Collecting data along the continuum of prevention and care: a Continuous Quality Improvement approach.

PubMed

Indyk, Leonard; Indyk, Debbie

2006-01-01

For the past 14 years, a team of applied social scientists and system analysts has worked with a wide variety of Community- Based Organizations (CBO's), other grassroots agencies and networks, and Medical Center departments to support resource, program, staff and data development and evaluation for hospital- and community-based programs and agencies serving HIV at-risk and affected populations. A by-product of this work has been the development, elaboration and refinement of an approach to Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) which is appropriate for diverse community-based providers and agencies. A key component of our CQI system involves the installation of a sophisticated relational database management and reporting system (DBMS) which is used to collect, analyze, and report data in an iterative process to provide feedback among the evaluators, agency administration and staff. The database system is designed for two purposes: (1) to support the agency's administrative internal and external reporting requirements; (2) to support the development of practice driven health services and early intervention research. The body of work has fostered a unique opportunity for the development of exploratory service-driven research which serves both administrative and research needs.

The Road to Rio: Medical and Scientific Perspectives on the 2016 Paralympic Games.

PubMed

Blauwet, Cheri; Lexell, Jan; Derman, Wayne; Idrisova, Guzel; Kissick, James; Stomphorst, Jaap; Wosornu, Yetsa Tuakli; Van de Vliet, Peter; Webborn, Nick

2016-08-01

In August and September of this year, the world will turn its attention to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for the 2016 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. Of interest to physiatrists, the Paralympic Games will take place from September 7 to 18, with an estimated total of 4 billion viewers. In the United States, for the first time in history, the Summer Games will be broadcast over a total of 66 hours on NBCUniversal. The Paralympic Games represent the pinnacle of elite sport for athletes with disabilities while also changing perceptions around the importance of grassroots sport and physical activity opportunities for the disability community more broadly. Copyright © 2016 American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

"Our reach is wide by any corporate standard": how the tobacco industry helped defeat the Clinton health plan and why it matters now.

PubMed

Tesler, Laura E; Malone, Ruth E

2010-07-01

Contemporary health care reformers, like those who promoted the failed Clinton era plan, face opposition from multiple corporate interests. However, scant literature has examined how relationships between corporations and other stakeholders, such as think tanks and advocacy groups, shape health care reform debate. We show how the 2 biggest US tobacco companies, Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds, and their trade association coordinated in mobilizing ideologically diverse constituencies to help defeat the Clinton plan. Unwittingly perhaps, some reform supporters advanced the tobacco industry's public relations blitz, contributing to perceptions of public opposition to the plan. As the current reform debate unfolds, this case highlights the importance of funding transparency for interpreting the activities of think tanks, advocacy groups, and "grassroots" movements.

Ditchin' the Master's Gardening Tools for Our Own: Growing a Womanist Methodology from the Grassroots

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marr, Vanessa L.

2014-01-01

This essay explores the autoethnographic possibilities of critical service-learning research and the emerging realities of a community-centered womanist methodological response. Drawing from Alice Walker's definition of "womanist" as a commitment to "survival and wholeness of entire people, male 'and' female," the author argues…

Commemorating 30 Years of Service to the People of Appalachia. Special Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Appalachia, 1995

1995-01-01

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a regional economic development agency representing a unique partnership of federal, state, and local governments. Established by an act of Congress in 1965, the Commission is composed of the governors of the 13 Appalachian states and a federal co-chairperson. Grassroots participation is provided by…

Mobilizing the Eastside of Los Angeles for Educational Justice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perez, Henry M.; Madera, Perla

2015-01-01

This article describes a ten-year effort led by youth, community organizers, and a range of partners that resulted in two new, successful high schools and showed the power of grassroots mobilization for social justice. Since opening in 2009 and 2010 respectively, Felicitas and Gonzalo Mendez High School for College and Career Preparation and…

Past, Present & Future of the US EPA: Protecting Human Health & the Natural Environment

EPA Science Inventory

The time line of events that lead to the creation of the US EPA are marked by grassroots efforts by average citizens voicing concerns to politicians in Washington. Visionary leadership by Congress and the President led to the birth of a Federal Agency dedicated to protecting huma...

Defining Common Ground: A Grass Roots Model for University-Public School Collaboration.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Starlings, Cable; Dybdahl, Claudia S.

1994-01-01

A collaborative, grass-roots partnership focusing on students at risk for educational failure has been developed by the University of Alaska Anchorage and the Anchorage (Alaska) School District. The effort is distinguished by a perception of common ground, a minimal administrative and financial structure, and a high degree of commitment from…

The AFS Volunteer Resources Study: Summary of Findings from Germany Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zeutschel, Uli; Hansel, Bettina

An ongoing debate exists on the issue of volunteering and its political implications in West Germany. Critics of the social welfare system have a direct impact on volunteerism. The ruling coalition aims to limit public spending in the social services sector while the "grassroots" movement emphasizes the danger of state-provided services…

Human Rights Education: Imaginative Possibilities for Creating Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bajaj, Monisha

2015-01-01

Background/Context: Human rights education has proliferated in the past four decades and can be found in policy discussions, textbook reforms, and grassroots initiatives across the globe. This article specifically explores the role of creativity and imagination in human rights education (HRE) by focusing on a case study of one non-governmental…

Are We Ready to #MeetTheMoment?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chin, Maisie

2015-01-01

CADRE, an organization led by Maisie Chin, is a Human Right to Education Campaign. Between 2005 and 2013, CADRE played a lead role in using grassroots organizing and leadership development to create a seismic shift in public policy, debate, and narrative around school discipline, racial disparities, parents' roles, school climate, and closing the…

The Protein Data Bank: a historical perspective.

PubMed

Berman, Helen M

2008-01-01

The Protein Data Bank began as a grassroots effort in 1971. It has grown from a small archive containing a dozen structures to a major international resource for structural biology containing more than 40000 entries. The interplay of science, technology and attitudes about data sharing have all played a role in the growth of this resource.

Promoting Positive Youth Development: The Miami Youth Development Project (YDP)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kurtines, William M.; Ferrer-Wreder, Laura; Berman, Steven L.; Lorente, Carolyn Cass; Briones, Ervin; Montgomery, Marilyn J.; Albrecht, Richard; Garcia, Arlen J.; Arrufat, Ondina

2008-01-01

The Miami Youth Development Project (YDP) had its beginnings in the early 1990s as a grassroots response to the needs of troubled (multiproblem) young people in the community (Arnett, Kurtines, & Montgomery, 2008, this issue). YDP is an important outcome of efforts to create positive youth development interventions that draw on the strengths…

Know a Baby Who Needs Help? Call ABC.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kromer, Megan E.

The booklet describes Project ABC (Any Baby Can), a model networking effort to promote coordinated services for disabled and high-risk infants in San Antonio, Texas. The model features a volunteer, grass-roots emphasis in an aggressive community awareness campaign with a long-term goal of improving the effectiveness of social services and health…

You Have to Be a Servant of All: Melanesian Women's Educational Leadership Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Strachan, Jane; Akao, Shalom; Kilavanwa, Bessie; Warsal, Daisy

2010-01-01

This article presents findings from research on women's educational leadership experiences in Melanesia, a least developed part of the world. Specific context research is needed so that theories and strategies developed that help women access educational leadership in developing countries are grounded in grassroots experience. (Contains 4 notes.)

Lideres Campesinas: Nepantla Strategies and Grassroots Organizing at the Intersection of Gender and Globalization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blackwell, Maylei

2010-01-01

Based on a collaborative ethnography with Lideres Campesinas, a state-wide farmworker women's organization in California, this essay explores how activists have created multi-issued organizing strategies grounded in family structures and a community-based social world. Building on Gloria Anzaldua's theory of nepantla, it illustrates how campesina…

Endangered Education: How Corporate Polluters Are Attacking Environmental Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bohart, Barbara; Manilov, Marianne; Schwarz, Tamara

This report claims that an attack has been waged on environmental education to derail the re-authorization of the National Environmental Education Act and to de-stabilize and de-fund environmental education in the United States. Presented in the media as a grassroots movement, stories have appeared in local, state, and national media that…

"Power in Numbers": Youth Organizing as a Context for Exploring Civic Identity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirshner, Ben

2009-01-01

This study examines civic identity exploration among African-American and Asian-American urban youth who participated in a grassroots organizing campaign to improve their local high schools. Drawing on 9 months of ethnographic fieldwork and interviews with participants, the study found that the campaign provided a venue for participants to wrestle…

Conflicting Knowledges: Barriers to Language Continuation in the Kimberley

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bedford, Patsy Ngalu; Casson, Siobhan K.

2010-01-01

The Kimberley Language Resource Centre (KLRC) earned its status over three decades as the representative body for Kimberley languages. In 2004, the organisation started to respond to grassroots concerns about the lack of language speakers in the younger generations. Aboriginal people are also connecting loss of languages to loss of bio-cultural…

Education and Its Limitations in the Maintenance of Peace in El Salvador.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moncada-Davidson, Lillian

1995-01-01

Points out weaknesses in Salvadoran government policies, which seek to reform public education and build human capital in the interests of long-term economic development but fail to address extreme poverty and social inequality. Suggests that support for existing grass-roots economic and educational projects would help the poor and thereby…

Women's Empowerment and Education: Linking Knowledge to Transformative Action

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stromquist, Nelly P.

2015-01-01

Women's empowerment is a concept that has acquired substantial recognition in the past decade. However, it is better known among international development organisations, NGOs, and grassroots groups than in academic circles. This article examines the concept of women's empowerment as a foundational element in a theory of social change in which the…

Tensions Mark Relationships between New Organizations and Teachers' Unions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sawchuk, Stephen

2012-01-01

As a new breed of national education advocacy organizations gains clout, they're entering into often-uneasy relationships with teachers' unions--and running into a debate about whether they can play a grassroots "ground game" comparable to that of labor. For many unions, the policy changes the newer groups typically support--staffing based on…

Foucault, Feminists and Funders: A Study of Power and Policy in Feminist Organisations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

English, Leona M.

2005-01-01

The article explores the relationships of feminist organisers with government policy makers and within their own organisations. Based on a qualitative study of eight directors and eight board members of grassroots feminist organisations, this paper examines how the funder (State) and the women (executive directors and board members) interact and…

Grassroots Philanthropy on the Prairie

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marshall, Joanne M.

2012-01-01

The Boone Hope Foundation has given away over $130,000 in gift cards, rent checks, and eyeglasses--all targeted to help students with emergency needs related to food, clothing, shelter, and healthcare in its rural Iowa community. This is the story of teachers from a typical Midwestern school--relatively small and certainly not affluent--who have…

Negotiating Tensions: Grassroots Organizing, School Reform, and the Paradox of Neoliberal Democracy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nygreen, Kysa

2017-01-01

Drawing from ethnographic fieldwork at a community-based organization (CBO) engaged in parent organizing for urban school reform, this paper examines how organizers engaged with the imperatives of neoliberal reform and the broader neoliberal policy context. It highlights organizers' agency but also shows how hegemonic discourse constrained their…

Absences and Imaginings: The Production of Knowledge on Globalisation and Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robertson, Susan L.

2006-01-01

In his paper "Grassroots globalization and the research imagination", Arjun Appadurai challenges academics to develop ways of researching and engaging with the victims of globalisation. A key objective of Appadurai's is to sketch out the problematic and build up the terrain on which a democratisation of research about globalisation might…

The Telecommunications Act of 1996: The Rural Impacts of Critical FCC Telecommunications Access Decisions. RUPRI Policy Brief.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Missouri Univ., Columbia. Rural Policy Research Inst.

The Telecommunications Act of 1996 constitutes a major overhaul of telecommunications law and will have a major impact on rural residents, communities, schools, libraries, and hospitals. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is requesting comments from "the grassroots" about telecommunications issues and concerns of greatest…

Activist Forest Monks, Adult Learning and the Buddhist Environmental Movement in Thailand

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walter, Pierre

2007-01-01

In the tradition of grassroots environmental movements worldwide, activist Buddhist monks in rural Thailand have, since the late 1980s, led a popular movement to protect local forest, water and land resources while at the same time challenging dominant state and corporate "economist" development paradigms. Most famously, these…

Border Pedagogy Cafes: Grassroots Conversations that Matter

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Necochea, Juan; Cline, Zulmara

2008-01-01

This exploratory study uses qualitative methods to analyze the impact of conversations in the Border Pedagogy "Cafes" on more than 500 binational educators from the Tijuana/San Diego area on the U.S.-Mexico border. Four important themes emerged from the analysis that describe the impact of the cafes and offer a strong foundation on which…

Not Your Parents' Marching Bands: The History of HONK!, Pedagogy and Music Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garofalo, Reebee

2011-01-01

The HONK! Festival of Activist Street Bands (honkfest.org) is an independent, grassroots, non-commercial weekend festival held each autumn in Somerville, Massachusetts. It is a moving spectacle of colourful marching bands, gigantic puppets, creative bikers, jugglers, hoopers, flag twirlers and stilt walkers, interspersed with unions, activist…

Inclusion of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Listening and Hearing to Voices from the Grassroots

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Majoko, Tawanda

2016-01-01

The current significantly high prevalence rates of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) coupled with the paradigm shift from exclusive to inclusive education warrants research on inclusion of children with ASD in mainstream classrooms in Zimbabwe. A qualitative methodology was used to interview 21 regular primary school teachers regarding social…

The Kefaya Movement: A Case Study of a Grassroots Reform Initiative

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-01-01

22 Bloggers ...It propagated banners and political cartoons using its own Web page and those of sympathetic bloggers . It documented abuses by state security...status to be “the secret of its beauty since it has been content for citizens—not the authorities, court rooms or discussions behind closed doors—to be

Flipping the Script: When Service-Learning Recipients become Service-Learning Givers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reed, Pam; Butler, Tamara

2015-01-01

Urban education is a complex system that is often shrouded in stereotypes, labels, and barriers. Service-learning is well-entrenched in suburban institutions, but is a fledgling or grassroots organization in the urban education community. Often, suburban service-learning initiatives have taken the tone of community service in that it is often…

Teacher Management in a Decentralised School Context in Nepal: Fuelling Tension and Dissent?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khanal, Peshal

2011-01-01

This article explores the issues and concerns of Nepalese teachers in relation to Gaynor's (1998) three models of teacher management (administrative, grassroots and alternative), constructed in the context of decentralisation reform around the world. The article suggests that the existing teacher management policies in Nepal are problematic and…

The Intentional and the Grassroots Hispanic-Serving Institutions: A Critical History of Two Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Doran, Erin; Medina, Øscar

2017-01-01

This study examines the institutional histories of Loma Verde University and Azul City University and their development over time into Hispanic-Serving Institutions. Utilizing a theoretical framework of transformational change, we focus on various aspects of these institutions, including curriculum, the allocation of physical spaces, and the…

Civic Media Literacies: Re-Imagining Engagement for Civic Intentionality

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mihailidis, Paul

2018-01-01

This paper explores the structural constraints of contemporary approaches to media literacy in the face of increased partisanship, tribalism, and distrust. In the midst of a renewed call for media literacy initiatives that respond to the increasing levels of distrust in both legacy and grassroots media, this paper argues that media literacy…

Grassroots Philanthropy on the Prairie

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marshall, Joanne M.

2013-01-01

Twenty-one students were homeless. One student had asked a cafeteria worker on a Friday afternoon for leftover food to take home for the weekend. Those were among the facts that high school English teacher Ann Haugland heard at a professional development event in her Boone, Iowa, Community School District. "I couldn't sleep that night,"…

Conflict and Co-Operation between "Popular" and "State" Education in Latin America

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kane, Liam

2007-01-01

During the Latin American oppression of the 1970s, as the rapidly increasing number of grassroots "popular" social movements sought to profit from and expand the ideas of the radical Brazilian educationist Paulo Freire, there developed, in its own right, a "popular education" movement which engaged in radical education for…

A historical forest management conundrum: do social and biophysical mix?

Treesearch

Heidi Bigler-Cole

2005-01-01

Forest managers face an array of prickly, seemingly intractable environmental problems. They have traditionally turned to the biophysical sciences to help gauge potential management effects, weigh alternatives, and set priorities. Over the past several decades, forest managers have watched management plans disintegrate in the face of grassroots-level protests, quarrels...

Working Women Count! A Report to the Nation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Women's Bureau (DOL), Washington, DC.

The Women's Bureau enlisted more than 1,600 partners to distribute a questionnaire asking women about their lives as workers. The partners included the following: more than 300 businesses, 900 grassroots organizations, 75 unions, daily newspapers, national magazines, and federal agencies in all 50 states, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and Puerto Rico.…

Believing in What's Possible, Taking Action to Make a Difference.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

And Others; Brinkley, Ellen H.

1997-01-01

Describes how a group of teachers, librarians, and other citizens, concerned about attacks on curriculum and public education itself, formed a grass-roots group called Michigan for Public Education to advocate educational equality and excellence. Describes how they got started, why people got involved, and what they have learned. Offers…

The Fight for America's Schools: Grassroots Organizing in Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ferman, Barbara, Ed.

2017-01-01

In "The Fight for America's Schools", Barbara Ferman brings together a diverse group of contributors to investigate how parents, communities, teachers, unions, and students are mobilizing to oppose market-based reforms in education. Drawing on a series of rich case studies, the book illustrates how disparate groups can forge new…

The Role of Networks in Supporting Grassroots Good Practice in Enterprise Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beresford, Richard; Beresford, Kate

2010-01-01

The important role that Further Education (FE) and Higher Education (HE) play in promoting more entrepreneurial attitudes and behaviours is well recognised. Whilst most countries in Europe have introduced policies to support this agenda through enterprise education, concerns remain as to its sustainability where enterprise education is often…

Language Revitalisation from the Ground Up: Promoting Yucatec Maya on Facebook

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cru, Josep

2015-01-01

This paper looks at current grassroots efforts to revitalise Yucatec Maya, an indigenous language of Mexico, in social media and more specifically on Facebook. In contrast to the limitations of institutional language promotion, the inclusion of Maya on Facebook shows the possibilities that social networks offer not only for actual use of…

Reconnecting Rural America. Report on Rural Intercity Passenger Transportation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stommes, Eileen S.

This report summarizes the results of three regional symposia held during 1987-88 to gather grassroots information about rural passenger transportation needs across the country. The first section describes the structural transformation of rural America in the 1980s: (1) the rural economy; (2) rural population trends; (3) impact of information…

Pennsylvania Adult and Continuing Education Research Conference Proceedings (Monroeville, Pennsylvania, October 8, 1994).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dean, Gary J., Ed.; Ferro, Trenton R., Ed.

This document contains 5 invited papers, 11 refereed papers, and 3 symposium papers from an adult and continuing education research conference. The invited papers are: "Community and Adult Education: A Conceptual Framework for Theory and Practice" (Gary J. Dean); "Understanding the Control of Learning within Grassroots Initiatives" (Joyce S.…

Civil Society and Control of Corruption: Assessing Governance of Romanian Public Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mungiu-Pippidi, Alina; Dusu, Andra Elena

2011-01-01

Romania is perceived as the most corrupt EU member state according to Transparency International Corruption Perception Index. In 2008-2009, a grassroots coalition of civil society organizations and education stakeholders created the Coalition for Clean Universities which organized the first assessment of integrity of the Romanian higher education…

Public Accountability for Charter Schools: Standards and Policy Recommendations for Effective Oversight

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dingerson, Leigh

2014-01-01

In 2012-2013, a working group of grassroots organizers and leaders from around the country met under the auspices of the "Annenberg Institute for School Reform" (AISR) and "Communities for Public Education Reform" (CPER) to explore the impact of rapid charter expansion on parents, students, and communities. The participants,…

Fugitive and Codified Knowledge: Implications for Communities Struggling to Control the Meaning of Local Environmental Hazards

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hill, Robert

2004-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative research was to determine the ways that knowledge is constructed and used by emergent citizen's groups (ECGs are grassroots, action-oriented, problem-solving groups) engaged in environmental conflicts, and by a state government environmental regulatory agency that interfaced with them. Four…

Keeping "Community" in a Community Land Trust

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gray, Karen A.; Galande, Mugdha

2011-01-01

This instrumental case study examined the role of grassroots community organizing in a community land trust (CLT) in a southern U.S. city. Twenty-nine homeowners, renters, board members, community members, and current and former CLT employees were interviewed. In addition, two focus groups of 11 and six participants composed of CLT residents and…

Teen Pregnancy Prevention: Grassroots Efforts in Orange County.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hemenway, Callista Lee

In 1979, a March of Dimes task force investigation in Orange County, California found a direct correlation between the rising number of low birth weight babies and the rising number of births to teens. Sparked by this investigation, the Coalition Concerned with Adolescent Pregnancy (CCAP), an independent non-profit agency, was formed. CCAP's…

State-Led Education for Democratic Socialism: Venezuela's Education Missions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duffy, Maura

2015-01-01

Venezuela's "Bolivarian Revolution" is conceptualised as an anti-neoliberal project that aims to promote fundamental changes in the configuration of political power via processes of state-grassroots collaboration. Central to this process is an emphasis on the key role of education in the development of a 21st Century socialism based on…

Engineering education research: Impacts of an international network of female engineers on the persistence of Liberian undergraduate women studying engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rimer, Sara; Reddivari, Sahithya; Cotel, Aline

2015-11-01

As international efforts to educate and empower women continue to rise, engineering educators are in a unique position to be a part of these efforts by encouraging and supporting women across the world at the university level through STEM education and outreach. For the past two years, the University of Michigan has been a part of a grassroots effort to encourage and support the persistence of engineering female students at University of Liberia. This effort has led to the implementation of a leadership camp this past August for Liberian engineering undergraduate women, meant to: (i) to empower engineering students with the skills, support, and inspiration necessary to become successful and well-rounded engineering professionals in a global engineering market; and (ii) to strengthen the community of Liberian female engineers by building cross-cultural partnerships among students resulting in a international network of women engineers. This session will present qualitative research findings on the impact of this grassroots effort on Liberian female students? persistence in engineering, and the future directions of this work.

Grassroots women have their say. Programme.

PubMed

1997-08-01

The International Reproductive Rights Research Action Group was founded in 1992 to conduct international research on the meanings of "reproductive rights" for grassroots women in different settings. The qualitative ethnographic study conducted in Brazil, Egypt, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, the Philippines, and the US sought to determine 1) concepts of entitlement about reproduction and sexuality; 2) how reproductive decisions are made; 3) how women practice resistance and accommodation in relation to self-identity and reproductive decision-making; and 4) what social, economic, legal, and political conditions and services affect women's decisions and reproductive life and rights. A number of interview techniques were employed with relatively small numbers of low-income people from diverse backgrounds in each country. The study revealed that significant similarities as well as differences existed among and within the study countries. The women studied exhibited a strong sense of entitlement over reproductive decisions, marriage, and sexual relations. In order to secure their needs, the women accommodated themselves to local expectations when they were unable to rely on a supportive environment to translate their sense of entitlement into effective rights.

Low sustainability, poor governance, and other challenges encountered by grassroots non-governmental organizations targeting HIV prevention for men who have sex with men in China - a nation-wide study.

PubMed

Lau, Joseph T F; Wang, Zixin; Kim, Yoona; Li, Jinghua; Gu, Jing; Mo, Phoenix K H; Wang, Xiaodong

2017-12-01

Grassroots non-governmental organizations (NGOs) played pivotal roles in HIV prevention among men who have sex with men (MSM) in China. Their governance and sustainability issues were under-studied. This nation-wide study surveyed leaders of 202 of the HIV related NGOs in China.58.4% of the leaders believed that their NGO would last for ≤5 years; which was negatively associated with perceived good relationship with CDC. 65.3% mentioned ≥3 non-sustainability issues; associated factors included perceived inadequacies in prevention skills, management skills, policy support, technical support, operational support, and CDC's support; a reverse association was found for frequent collaboration with organizations in China. 30.6% of the leaders mentioned ≥7 governance issues; a stepwise model found a positive association with having no office and negative associations with number of full-time staff and core volunteers. These problems would severely limit the effectiveness of HIV prevention among MSM. Related improvements and support are warranted.

Assessing the impact of federal and state preemption in public health: a framework for decision makers.

PubMed

Pertschuk, Mark; Pomeranz, Jennifer L; Aoki, Julie Ralston; Larkin, Michelle A; Paloma, Marjorie

2013-01-01

In the United States, state and local public health policies play a fundamental role in innovation and progress. Preemption, by which Congress or the state legislatures limit the authority of lower jurisdictions, can eliminate the benefits of state and local policy initiatives. Preemption can also have a negative impact on enforcement, civic engagement, and grassroots movement building.In June 2011, the Institute of Medicine published a groundbreaking report on policy and law that considered preemption as a crosscutting issue in public health. The Institute of Medicine recommended that federal and state policy makers "should set minimum standards...allowing states and localities to further protect the health and safety of their inhabitants," and "should avoid language that hinders public health action."The Preemption Framework is a tool to support effective decision making by helping the public health field anticipate, assess, and, if necessary, counter preemptive policy proposals. We review the consequences of preemption, including its potential impact on grassroots public health movements, and propose practical questions and considerations to assist decision makers in responding to preemptive proposals.

Grassroots community organizations' contribution to the scale-up of HIV testing and counselling services in Zimbabwe.

PubMed

Gregson, Simon; Nyamukapa, Constance A; Sherr, Lorraine; Mugurungi, Owen; Campbell, Catherine

2013-06-19

To investigate whether community engagement (participation in grassroots organizations) contributed to increases in HIV testing in Zimbabwe. Prospective data on membership of local community organizations (e.g. women's groups and burial societies) and uptake of HIV testing and counselling (HTC) and prevention-of-mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) services were collected from 5260 adults interviewed in two consecutive rounds of a general-population cohort survey in eastern Zimbabwe between 2003 and 2008. The effects of community engagement on uptake of services during the follow-up period were measured using logistic regression to adjust for observed confounding factors. Sixteen percent of men and 47% of women were consistent members of community organizations; 58 and 35% of these people discussed HIV in their meetings and were members of externally sponsored organizations, respectively. Fewer men (10.1%) than women (32.4%) took up HTC during follow-up [adjusted odds ratio (aOR)=4.08, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3.43-4.86, P<0.001]. HTC uptake was higher for members of community organizations than for nonmembers: men, 15.0 versus 9.2% (1.67, 1.15-2.43, P=0.007); women, 35.6 versus 29.6% (1.26, 1.06-1.49, P=0.008). Membership of community organizations showed a nonsignificant association with PMTCT uptake amongst recently pregnant women (42.3 versus 34.2%; 1.30, 0.94-1.78, P=0.1). The most consistent positive associations between community participation and HTC and PMTCT uptake were found in organizations that discussed HIV and when external sponsorship was absent. Grassroots organizations contributed to increased uptake of HTC services in eastern Zimbabwe in the mid-2000s. Partnerships with these organizations could harness community support for the further increases in HIV testing needed in sub-Saharan Africa. © 2013 Creative Common License

Grassroots community organizations’ contribution to the scale-up of HIV testing and counselling services in Zimbabwe

PubMed Central

Gregson, Simon; Nyamukapa, Constance A.; Sherr, Lorraine; Mugurungi, Owen; Campbell, Catherine

2013-01-01

Objective: To investigate whether community engagement (participation in grassroots organizations) contributed to increases in HIV testing in Zimbabwe. Methods: Prospective data on membership of local community organizations (e.g. women's groups and burial societies) and uptake of HIV testing and counselling (HTC) and prevention-of-mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) services were collected from 5260 adults interviewed in two consecutive rounds of a general-population cohort survey in eastern Zimbabwe between 2003 and 2008. The effects of community engagement on uptake of services during the follow-up period were measured using logistic regression to adjust for observed confounding factors. Results: Sixteen percent of men and 47% of women were consistent members of community organizations; 58 and 35% of these people discussed HIV in their meetings and were members of externally sponsored organizations, respectively. Fewer men (10.1%) than women (32.4%) took up HTC during follow-up [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 4.08, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3.43–4.86, P < 0.001]. HTC uptake was higher for members of community organizations than for nonmembers: men, 15.0 versus 9.2% (1.67, 1.15–2.43, P = 0.007); women, 35.6 versus 29.6% (1.26, 1.06–1.49, P = 0.008). Membership of community organizations showed a nonsignificant association with PMTCT uptake amongst recently pregnant women (42.3 versus 34.2%; 1.30, 0.94–1.78, P = 0.1). The most consistent positive associations between community participation and HTC and PMTCT uptake were found in organizations that discussed HIV and when external sponsorship was absent. Conclusion: Grassroots organizations contributed to increased uptake of HTC services in eastern Zimbabwe in the mid-2000s. Partnerships with these organizations could harness community support for the further increases in HIV testing needed in sub-Saharan Africa. PMID:24047764

"When Does It Stop Being Peanut Butter?": FDA Food Standards of Identity, Ruth Desmond, and the Shifting Politics of Consumer Activism, 1960s-1970s.

PubMed

Boyce, Angie M

This article uses a historical controversy over the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's standard of identity for peanut butter as a site for investigating three topics of high importance for historians of technology, consumption, and food activism: how new industrial food-processing technologies have become regulatory problems; how government, industry, and consumer actors negotiate standards development; and how laypeople try to shape technological artifacts in spaces dominated by experts. It examines the trajectory of consumer activist Ruth Desmond, co-founder of the organization the Federation of Homemakers. By following Desmond's evolving strategies, the article shows how the broader currents of the 1960s-70s consumer movement played out in a particular case. Initially Desmond used a traditional style that heavily emphasized her gendered identity, working within a grassroots organization to promote legislative and regulatory reforms. Later, she moved to a more modern advocacy approach, using adversarial legal methods to fight for consumer protections.

Why change programs don't produce change.

PubMed

Beer, M; Eisenstat, R A; Spector, B

1990-01-01

Faced with changing markets and tougher competition, more and more companies realize that to compete effectively they must transform how they function. But while senior managers understand the necessity of change, they often misunderstand what it takes to bring it about. They assume that corporate renewal is the product of company-wide change programs and that in order to transform employee behavior, they must alter a company's formal structure and systems. Both these assumptions are wrong, say these authors. Using examples drawn from their four-year study of organizational change at six large corporations, they argue that change programs are, in fact, the greatest obstacle to successful revitalization and that formal structures and systems are the last thing a company should change, not the first. The most successful change efforts begin at the periphery of a corporation, in a single plant or division. Such efforts are led by general managers, not the CEO or corporate staff people. And these general managers concentrate not on changing formal structures and systems but on creating ad hoc organizational arrangements to solve concrete business problems. This focuses energy for change on the work itself, not on abstractions such as "participation" or "culture." Once general managers understand the importance of this grass-roots approach to change, they don't have to wait for senior management to start a process of corporate renewal. The authors describe a six-step change process they call the "critical path."

After epidemiological research: what next? Community action for health promotion.

PubMed

Cwikel, J G

1994-01-01

The underlying purpose of all epidemiological research is ultimately to use inferences in order to prevent disease and promote health and well-being. Effective skills in translating results into appropriate policy, programs, and interventions are inherently tricky, and often politically controversial. Generally they are not taught to epidemiologists formally, even though they are a traditionally part of public health practice. To move from findings to policy change requires that the informed and committed epidemiologist should known how to: (1) organize affected parties to negotiate successfully with government and industry; (2) activate populations at risk to protect their health (3) communicate responsibly with lay persons about their health risks so as to encourage effective activism; (4) collaborate with other professionals to achieve disease prevention and health promotion goals. The paper presents and discusses four case studies to illustrate these strategies: (1) the grass-roots social action that was the response of the community to the environmental contamination at Love Canal, New York; (2) mobilization of recognized leaders within the gay community to disseminate HIV risk reduction techniques; (3) collaboration with an existing voluntary organization interested in community empowerment through health promotion in a Chicago slum by using existing hospital, emergency room admissions, and local motor vehicle accident data; (4) a self-help group, MADD (mothers against drunk driving) which fought to change public policy to limit and decrease drunk driving. In addition, the importance of multidisciplinary collaboration and responsible communication with the public is emphasized. Factors that limit the ability of the epidemiologist to move into public health action are discussed, including who owns the research findings, what is the degree of scientific uncertainty, and the cost-benefit balance of taking affirmative public action. Putting epidemiological knowledge to good use should be an integral part of an epidemiologist's repertoire.

Listening, sharing understanding and facilitating consumer, family and community empowerment through a priority driven partnership in Far North Queensland.

PubMed

Haswell-Elkins, Melissa; Reilly, Lyndon; Fagan, Ruth; Ypinazar, Valmae; Hunter, Ernest; Tsey, Komla; Gibson, Victor; Connolly, Brian; Laliberte, Arlene; Wargent, Rachael; Gibson, Teresa; Saunders, Vicki; McCalman, Janya; Kavanagh, David

2009-08-01

This paper provides an example of a mental health research partnership underpinned by empowerment principles that seeks to foster strength among community organizations to support better outcomes for consumers, families and communities. It aims to raise awareness among researchers and service providers that empowerment approaches to assist communities to address mental health problems are not too difficult to be practical but require long-term commitment and appropriate support. A collaborative research strategy that has become known as the Priority Driven Research (PDR) Partnership emerged through literature review, consultations, Family Wellbeing Program delivery with community groups and activities in two discrete Indigenous communities. Progress to date on three of the four components of the strategy is described. The following key needs were identified in a pilot study and are now being addressed in a research-based implementation phase: (i) gaining two-way understanding of perspectives on mental health and promoting universal awareness; (ii) supporting the empowerment of carers, families, consumers and at-risk groups through existing community organizations to gain greater understanding and control of their situation; (iii) developing pathways of care at the primary health centre level to enable support of social and emotional wellbeing as well as more integrated mental health care; (iv) accessing data to enable an ongoing process of analysis/sharing/planning and monitoring to inform future activity. One of the key learnings to emerge in this project so far is that empowerment through partnership becomes possible when there is a concerted effort to strengthen grassroots community organizations. These include social health teams and men's and women's groups that can engage local people in an action orientation.

[Strategic framework for cholera prevention and control in Chengdu: construction and effectiveness evaluation].

PubMed

Liang, Xian; Du, Chang-hui; Yang, Lan; Ma, Lin; Huang, Zhong-hang; Tuo, Xiao-Li; Yin, Zhong-liang

2011-02-01

To construct an operable strategic framework for cholera prevention and control which mobilized the advantages of local resources and adapted to social developments in Chengdu, and to evaluate its application effects. (1) After analyzing the local epidemic data of cholera in Chengdu from 1994 to 2004, we determined the main problems of cholera prevention and control works as well as the efficiency and deficiency of employed measures, and then formed a basic strategic framework. (2) After 55 invited experts preliminarily scored the strategic framework, we selected 72 specific measures to establish a measure entry database, and then the importance and operability of each measure were scored by 17 core experts. (3) Finally, the effectiveness of this strategic framework was evaluated according to the analyzing results of infection control, health education and etiological monitoring. (1) The framework took government leadership as main scenario and the informatization as subordination scenario. Meanwhile, it focused on three points: the improvement of social environment, the completion of system and mechanisms for monitoring and early warning, and the enhancement of CDC response to public health emergencies. Total importance score and operability score of 35 specific measures included in this framework was 4.20 ± 0.86 and 4.09 ± 0.87, respectively. (2) Chengdu had maintained zero cholera incidence for five consecutive years from 2005 to 2009 since it gradually began to implement the strategic framework in 2002. There were 19 positive cholera cases detected by etiological monitoring and all of them were seafood or fishery products including soft-shelled turtles, silver carps and bullfrogs. The coverage rate and qualification rate of the training for grassroots cadres, grassroots medical workers, mobile cooks and their assistants was 98.14% (198 452/202 220) and 98.17% (194 820/198 452) in average, respectively. The qualification rate of the training for employees in food industry was over 96.00% (912 470/950 489). The average awareness rate of cholera prevention and cure knowledge in rural residents, grassroots cadres, grassroots medical workers, mobile cooks and their assistants was 93.87% (1653/1761) and the average formation rate of good hygiene habits was 70.58% (1243/1761). A strategic framework suitable for cholera prevention and control in Chengdu has been successfully established in this study. The incidence rate of cholera has maintained zero in Chengdu for five consecutive years under incessant threatening conditions such as the occurrence of cholera cases from time to time in its surrounding areas and the continuous existence of Bacillus comma in seafood or fishery products that entered local markets. Therefore, it demonstrated a good application effects.

Sports in pediatric oncology: the role(s) of physical activity for children with cancer.

PubMed

Götte, Miriam; Taraks, Silke; Boos, Joachim

2014-03-01

Malignant disease and anticancer therapy dramatically affect daily life activities and participation in grassroots and high-performance sports. Specifically in childhood and adolescence such activities are relevant factors of individual development and social life. This review focuses on the inherent reduction of normal physical activity in pediatric oncology because this cutback additionally contributes to the level of burden of malignancies. Maintaining normality requires detailed analyses of disease-related and therapy-related restrictions and their justification. Relevant efforts should be stepped up to maintain physical activity levels during pediatric cancer therapy. Another aspect addresses direct therapeutic implications. Feasibility studies, nonrandomized as well as randomized investigations addressed therapeutic effects in acute hospital care, in bone marrow transplant settings, and in outpatient therapy. The overall summary shows positive effects on clinical and psychosocial outcome. Even if the basis of the data for children is still limited, there will be no doubt about a general impact of physical activity on acute side effects as well as late effects. In the areas of tension between context-related restrictions, the right to maintain normality wherever possible and the positive therapeutic and psychosocial perspectives of sports, strong efforts are needed to support physical activity wherever indicated, clarify contraindications, and overcome structural limitations.

Utility of Respondent Driven Sampling to Reach Disadvantaged Emerging Adults for Assessment of Substance Use, Weight, and Sexual Behaviors.

PubMed

Tucker, Jalie A; Simpson, Cathy A; Chandler, Susan D; Borch, Casey A; Davies, Susan L; Kerbawy, Shatomi J; Lewis, Terri H; Crawford, M Scott; Cheong, JeeWon; Michael, Max

2016-01-01

Emerging adulthood often entails heightened risk-taking with potential life-long consequences, and research on risk behaviors is needed to guide prevention programming, particularly in under-served and difficult to reach populations. This study evaluated the utility of Respondent Driven Sampling (RDS), a peer-driven methodology that corrects limitations of snowball sampling, to reach at-risk African American emerging adults from disadvantaged urban communities. Initial "seed" participants from the target group recruited peers, who then recruited their peers in an iterative process (110 males, 234 females; M age = 18.86 years). Structured field interviews assessed common health risk factors, including substance use, overweight/obesity, and sexual behaviors. Established gender-and age-related associations with risk factors were replicated, and sample risk profiles and prevalence estimates compared favorably with matched samples from representative U.S. national surveys. Findings supported the use of RDS as a sampling method and grassroots platform for research and prevention with community-dwelling risk groups.

Summer Camp: Language Learning beyond the Walls--A Grassroots Model for Summer Immersion Camp

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seewald, Amanda

2012-01-01

In efforts to improve, expand and inspire language learning to become a basic and essential component of the landscape of the educational system, one must reach out beyond the walls of the classroom to engage learners early. Real-world learning and energized, playful, interactive language experiences that inspire can drastically change the…

Reconnecting to Mission: Connecticut College's Outreach to New London during the Claire Gaudiani Era

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marthers, Paul

2009-01-01

During her presidency (1988-2001), Claire Gaudiani reconnected Connecticut College with New London, the college's home city, whose citizens through grassroots fund raising and donations of land established the college in 1911. Through an emphasis on service-learning, community outreach, and an education not for oneself as well as economic…

Public Relationship Building in Grassroots Community Organizing: Relational Intervention for Individual and Systems Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Christens, Brian D.

2010-01-01

Building relationships among participants has become a strategic lynchpin of many community organizing initiatives. Although the relational work of organizing is often mentioned in studies on community change, it has not been studied as a process or model for community intervention. This article positions the development of a specific type of…

Tap the Power of the Internet for Your Fundraising Campaigns

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dawkins, Tom

2013-01-01

Just as online tools are connecting school communities, so, too, are the ways of raising the funds for grassroots projects changing. Over the past 10 years, increasingly sophisticated tools have been developed to assist with the process of raising money online. Crowdfunding is a new approach that offers donors a gamelike experience, with pledges…

Cultivating Community Schools: Austin's Grassroots Effort

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dubin, Jennifer

2015-01-01

In 2007, Walter P. Webb Middle School faced a crisis. One evening in January, the superintendent at the time held a meeting at the school in Austin, Texas, to let students, parents, teachers, and community members know that at the end of the academic year, their school would close. Thanks to a new state law focused on accountability, the…

Competing Paradigms of Educational Justice: Parent Organizing for Educational Equity in a Neoliberal Reform Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nygreen, Kysa

2016-01-01

This article examines a grassroots parent organizing effort in a large, high-poverty, urban school district. Drawing from ethnographic field research at a community-based popular education organization, the study describes how parent organizers worked to educate and mobilize Latina/o immigrant parents on issues of educational justice and equity.…

Resisting Educational Exclusion: The Baha'i Institute of Higher Education in Iran

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Affolter, Friedrich W.

2007-01-01

This article explores the motivational causes for learning and community service of students, faculty, and volunteer supporters of the Baha'i Institute of Higher Education (BIHE) in Iran. BIHE is a grassroots initiative launched by Baha'i academics, who--after having been expelled from public universities as a result of their allegiance to the…

Challenging Educational Injustice: "Grassroots" Privatisation in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tooley, James

2013-01-01

The phenomenon of low-cost private schools "mushrooming" in poor areas of sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, and elsewhere, is now well-documented. Findings from research by the author's teams and others show that these schools are serving a majority (urban and peri-urban) or significant minority (rural) of the poor, including…

A Study of the St. Lawrence River Ecological Habitat

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mesires, Maria

2010-01-01

Save the River, a grassroots advocacy group established in 1978, lobbies for policies to preserve the upper St. Lawrence River and uses the community's help to keep an eye on the existing habitats. Recently, they procured the Fresh Sound Foundation grant to support the development of new K-12 ecology curricula by local area teachers to educate…

On Separate Paths: The Mexican American and African American Legal Campaigns against School Segregation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Powers, Jeanne M.

2014-01-01

"Brown v. Board of Education" (1954) was a landmark decision that was the result of decades of efforts by grassroots activists and civil rights organizations to end legalized segregation. A less well-known effort challenged the extralegal segregation of Mexican American students in the Southwest. I combine original research and research…

Peace Corps Volunteers and the Boundaries of Bottom-Up Development: Mongolia, a Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schuckman, Hugh Erik

2012-01-01

From President Kennedy's first announcement of a non-military US volunteer corps in 1961, the Peace Corps has been one of the preeminent government grassroots volunteer development agency. This study explores the history of the ambiguities inherent in this contention, pressure primarily stemming from the organization's role as both a governmental…

Theorizing Sport as Social Intervention: A View from the Grassroots

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hartmann, Douglas

2003-01-01

Sport and recreation-based approaches to the social problems of "at-risk" urban youth have become very popular in recent years. Yet the lack of a proper theoretical understanding of these initiatives threatens to minimize their effectiveness and could generate a backlash against them. To begin to fill this void, this paper presents a…

Engagement through Microblogging: Educator Professional Development via Twitter

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carpenter, Jeffrey P.; Krutka, Daniel G.

2015-01-01

Traditional, top-down professional development (PD) can render teachers mere implementers of the ideas of others, but there is some hope that the participatory nature of social media such as Twitter might support more grassroots PD. To better understand Twitter's role in education, we conducted a survey of K-16 educators regarding their use of the…

Changing Schools of Education through Grassroots Faculty-Led Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perry, Jill Alexa

2014-01-01

In this article I report on the application of the lens of Rogers' (1995) change agent roles and Kezar and Lester's (2011) adaptation of tempered radicals in order to understand the leadership roles assumed by three individual faculty members located at three distinct schools of education. These faculty leaders utilized the concepts and…

A Grassroots Approach to Formulating a Multicultural, Interdisciplinary Core Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carrier, Henry N.; Williams, Donald A.

This paper reports on the study at Brevard Community College in Florida to discover how faculty and students can learn from each other. By examining the diverse elements of the college population and making the findings widely available, the disparate liberal arts courses and the diversity of participating faculty and students can become mutually…

Olympiad Studies: Competitions Provide Alternatives to Developing Talents that Serve National Interests

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campbell, James Reed; Walberg, Herbert J.

2011-01-01

Competitions are used by many teachers at the grassroots level to develop the talents of their gifted students. Each year the top Mathematics, Chemistry, and Physics Olympiad students are identified and assembled into national teams that compete against teams from around the world. This article summarizes findings from the American Olympiad study.…

The Power of Possibility. Defining Moments: How IDRA and Its Partners Are Changing Public Education. IDRA Annual Report 2014

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Intercultural Development Research Association, 2014

2014-01-01

Intercultural Development Research Association's (IDRA) 2014 Annual Report highlights seven defining moments in the work of the previous year: (1) Securing Opportunity; (2) Defending Children's Educational and Civil Rights; (3) Building a National Grassroots Family Model; (4) Putting Quality Early Education at the Forefront; (5) Empowering…

How to Use Social Media as an Advocacy Tool

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kidwai, Sabrina; Imperatore, Catherine

2011-01-01

When Barack Obama ran for President in 2008, he not only used a grassroots campaign to reach out to his constituents, he also utilized social media. Since Obama's run for President, other politicians and federal government officials have sought to capitalize on social media's reach by creating their own Facebook, YouTube and Twitter accounts.…

Using Mixed Methods from a Communicative Orientation: Researching with Grassroots Roma

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flecha, Ramon

2014-01-01

Over a decade ago, researchers in Roma studies shifted their approach, from an exclusionary stance to a more communicative one. Despite major positive changes since then, researchers still do not adequately reflect the voices of the majority of the world's Roma. In this article, we draw on a communicative mixed methods case study, conducted within…

The Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blessing, Susan

2014-03-01

The APS Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) are the continuation of a grass-roots collaborative effort that began 2006. The goals of the conferences are to increase retention and improve career outcomes of undergraduate women in physics. I will discuss the conferences, including organization and participant response, and encourage participation--of both students and institutions.

Using Digital Participatory Research to Foster Glocal Competence: Constructing Multimedia Projects as a Form of Global and Civic Citizenship

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mathews, Sarah A.

2016-01-01

Digital Participatory Research (DPR) combines grass-roots participatory research and photojournalism, asks students to investigate assets and issues within their community, and facilitates civic participation by using problem-posing and praxis-orientated methods. Although there is a vast amount of research documenting the impact of DPR at the…

Mapping the Past, Present, and Future of Teaching Leadership Chairs in Canada: A Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andrews, David M.; Bornais, Judy A. K.; Cramer, Ken M.

2016-01-01

We explore the advent and initiatives of teaching leadership chairs--modeled after the Canada Research Chair framework--to instill individuals or small groups of teaching leaders at various centres across the country to stimulate educational change. In its past, present, and future, we explore the grassroots of teaching leadership chairs and their…

Linking Local Food Systems and the Social Economy? Future Roles for Farmers' Markets in Alberta and British Columbia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wittman, Hannah; Beckie, Mary; Hergesheimer, Chris

2012-01-01

Often organized as grassroots, nonprofit organizations, many farmers' markets serve as strategic venues linking producers and consumers of local food while fulfilling multiple social, economic, and environmental objectives. This article examines the potential of farmers' markets to play a catalyst role in linking local food systems to the social…

New Organizations, New Voices: The Landscape of Today's Teachers Shaping Policy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pennington, Kaitlin

2013-01-01

In the past five years, a number of grassroots groups and fellowships have emerged across the United States with the goal of giving teachers a greater role and a stronger voice in improving everything from the professional practice of teaching to the way the profession is governed. These groups are often called "teacher-voice…

A Little Help from Their Friends: Institutions Build Armies of Alumni Advocates to Influence Legislators and Shape Public Opinion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Simonetti, Kristin

2013-01-01

Institutions build armies of alumni advocates to influence legislators and shape public opinion. This article describes two types of alumni advocacy: grasstops and grassroots. Grasstops advocacy engages smaller, targeted groups of alumni who have a stronger, more influential connection with legislators and other public officeholders. Grassroots…

Organizing for North Carolina: Social Movement Unionism in a Southern State

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Mark

2017-01-01

Across the United States, a counter-network of teacher activists is engaged in the development of grassroots organizing structures to advocate for social justice, resist the privatization of public education, and increase union democracy. The United Caucuses of Rank and File Educators (UCORE) is a national network of more than 20 union reform…

A Cord of Three Strands: A New Approach to Parent Engagement in Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hong, Soo

2011-01-01

How can low-income, non-English-speaking parents become advocates, leaders, and role models in their children's schools? "A Cord of Three Strands" offers a close study of the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, a grassroots organization on the northwest side of Chicago, whose work on parent engagement has drawn national attention. The…

Changing the Public's Attitude Toward Braille: A Grassroots Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wells-Jensen, Sheri; Wells-Jensen, Jason; Belknap, Gabrielle

2005-01-01

This study addressed the effect of casual exposure to braille on the attitudes toward blindness and the use of braille of three groups of sighted university students: students in two sections of a general linguistics course for language arts teachers, one taught by a blind instructor (Group 1) and the other taught by a sighted instructor (Group…

African American History and Culture: A Grassroots Interpretation of Culturally-Relevant Teaching for Academic Achievement and College Access

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cross, Beverly E.

2008-01-01

The Achievement, Confidence and Excellence (ACE) Academy in Memphis is a partnership involving the University of Memphis, its Benjamin Hooks Institute for Social Change, and three area school districts. ACE operates as a Saturday Institute, serving three hundred seventh to twelfth grade African American students. Grounded in culturally relevant…

Teacher-Led Professional Development: A Proposal for a Bottom-up Structure Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Macias, Angela

2017-01-01

This article uses current research recommendations for teacher-led professional development as well as qualitative data from a set of grassroots conferences to propose a new model for bottom-up teacher-led professional development. This article argues that by providing a neutral space and recruiting expertise of local experts, a public sphere can…

Language Policy in Japanese Ethnic Churches in Canada and the Legitimization of Church Member Identities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barrett, Tyler

2017-01-01

This paper is aimed at understanding the language policy of Japanese ethnic churches and the legitimization of church member identities in the midst of dominant languages in Canada. While church members often construct Japanese ethnic Christian churches with 'grassroots' language policies that seem to legitimize their Japanese language and…

Supporters of Evolution Theory Show Their Religious Stripes: Goal Is to Resonate with Public Beliefs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cavanagh, Sean

2005-01-01

Scientists, teachers, and others who defend the teaching of evolution in public school science classes have grown accustomed to countering accusations that acceptance of the theory disavows religious faith. Now, an increasing number of grassroots organizations are trying to fight that perception with renewed vigor, and in so doing, cultivate…

Deaf Leadership Training for Community Interaction. A Manual for "Grassroots" Leadership.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Petersen, Eugene W., Ed.

This manual is the outgrowth of a workshop sponsored by the National Association of the Deaf in 1969 to develop guidelines on deaf leadership training for community interaction. The manual contains: (1) "A Welcome and a Challenge" by Robert L. Lankenau; (2) "The Critical Need for Leadership" by Don G. Pettingill; (3) "The National Census--A…

Grassroots Approaches to Combatting Poverty through Adult Education. Supplement to Adult Education and Development. No. 34.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duke, Chris; And Others

1990-01-01

This supplement to "Adult Education and Development," a journal for adult education in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, refers to and is intended as a companion volume to "Combatting Poverty through Adult Education: National Development Strategies" (Croom Helm 1985). In addition to an introductory chapter and a conclusion, this…

Integrating Health Promotion in the National Agenda: The Perspective of a Grassroots Advocate

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Donnell, Michael P.

2012-01-01

On June 16, 2011, Dr. Regina Benjamin, Surgeon General of the United States, released the "National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy: America's Plan for Better Health and Wellness," described as "the nation's first-ever National Prevention Strategy" by the U.S. Surgeon General. This was one of at least 38 provisions in the Patient…

Building Teacher Leadership for Innovation and Ownership. Conference Paper

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chimbel, Bethanne; Smith, Orion

2015-01-01

At Arlington Heights High School, a grassroots effort began in the 2010-2011 school year with the formation of a new committee of teacher leaders on campus, tasked with envisioning and creating campus change hand-in-hand with administration. This committee's membership has continued to evolve over the last five years, and we are now known as the…

Enabling Initiative and Enterprise: Faculty-Led Course Redesign in a STEM Discipline

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dee, Jay R.; Henkin, Alan B.; Hearne, Jennifer L.

2011-01-01

This study focuses on processes and outcomes associated with a faculty grassroots initiative to reform teaching and learning in an introductory chemistry course at a research university. The purpose of this study is threefold. First, the study considers faculty groups and teams as sites and sources of pedagogical change in an effort to improve…

Functional Domains of the Quechua Language in Peru: Issues of Status Planning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coronel-Molina, Serafin M.

1999-01-01

Examines the status of Quechua in Peru and how it has affected language maintenance efforts; discusses the functional domains served by Quechua, relating them to Peruvian language policies; notes the lack of grassroots efforts by indigenous people in Peru; and suggests possible measures to improve its status, noting predictions of the future of…

Maintaining and Revitalising Indigenous Languages in Latin America: State Planning vs. Grassroots Initiatives.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hornberger, Nancy H.

1999-01-01

Introduces a collection of papers that address issues related to the maintenance and revitalization of indigenous languages in Latin and Central America. Two papers focus on the case of Quechua, another considers bilingual intercultural education to help sustain the Harakmbut languages in Peru, and the last considers one of three native language…

Reform Doesn't Work: Grassroots Efforts Can Provide Answers to School Improvement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Babbage, Keen

2012-01-01

Where does education happen? In classrooms. Teachers can provide the ultimate reform of education and teachers can be the ultimate reformers of education. Still, teachers cannot create all of the needed improvements in education alone. Input from, involvement from, ideas from, and participation from many other people can combine with what only…

Progressive Education and the Case of a Bilingual Palestinian-Arab and Jewish Co-Existence School in Israel

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arar, Khalid; Massry-Herzalah, Asmahan

2017-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to exemplify a "grass-roots" change based on Dewey's experimental progressive education model employed in the "Bridge over the Valley" bilingual school, a Palestinian-Arab and Jewish school in Israel. In order to identify the progressive "approach" underlying this change, the…

The World Indigenous Research Alliance (WIRA): Mediating and Mobilizing Indigenous Peoples' Educational Knowledge and Aspirations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whitinui, Paul; McIvor, Onowa; Robertson, Boni; Morcom, Lindsay; Cashman, Kimo; Arbon, Veronica

2015-01-01

There is an Indigenous resurgence in education occurring globally. For more than a century Euro-western approaches have controlled the provision and quality of education to, and for Indigenous peoples. The World Indigenous Research Alliance (WIRA) established in 2012, is a grass-roots movement of Indigenous scholars passionate about making a…

A Tradition that Has No Name: Nurturing the Development of People, Families, and Communities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Belenky, Mary Field; Bond, Lynne A.; Weinstock, Jacqueline S.

This book focuses on grassroots projects and organizations for people, especially women, who have been stigmatized as "Other." An introduction discusses the concept of "Other"; Listening Partners, a short-term project for bringing isolated mothers living in rural poverty into voice; and the leadership tradition. Chapter 1 considers dualism, such…

Organizing for Change: A Case Study of Grassroots Leadership at a Kentucky Community College

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Borregard, Andrea Rae

2016-01-01

Community colleges constitute a special type of higher education organization: their complex mission, dynamics, personnel structures, and values require a distinct set of understandings and skills to lead and manage them well. Most of the research on leadership in community colleges focuses on leaders in positions of power (presidents, provosts,…

Action at the Grassroots: Fighting Poverty and Environmental Decline. Worldwatch Paper 88.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Durning, Alan B.

There are many forces of environmental and economic decline that endanger our communities and planet. These have caused a global threat which is very complex. The pressure to feed increasing numbers of people helps cause high rates of topsoil loss which results in decreased agricultural productivity. As poorer nations attempt to fight these…

Advancing Grassroots Climate Change Awareness in Botswana: BCA Campus Greenhouse Gas Baseline Inventory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Batisani, Nnyaladzi; Ndiane, Abijah

2014-01-01

Purpose: This paper aims to report on the results of a case study in Botswana, aimed at raising awareness on climate issues. Higher-education institutions play a leading role in sustainability efforts, as their research role often lays the groundwork for social transformation. Design/methodology/approach: The Clean Air-Cool Planet (CACP) campus…

Massachusetts Consortium for Innovative Education Assessments: Creating a Grassroots Accountability System to Leverage State Policy Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

French, Dan

2018-01-01

Standardized testing remains the predominant proficiency measure for students and schools, placing teacher and student focus on test-prep and lower order skills while maintaining achievement gaps that penalize underserved students. The Massachusetts Consortium for Innovative Assessment seeks to close this gap and change assessment measures on a…

Reaching and Helping Unorganized and Disadvantaged People. Courier No. 33.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

ASPBAE Courier, 1985

1985-01-01

The articles in this issue are mainly concerned with how to reach the poorest and most disadvantaged sections of the population and how best to help once contact has been made. "Nijera Kori in Retrospect: In Search of an Organization of the Rural Poor" (Mohiuddin Ahmad) provides extracts from an evaluation of this grassroots,…

Grassroots Responsiveness to Human Rights Abuse: History of the Washtenaw Interfaith Coalition for Immigrant Rights

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanders, Laura; Martinez, Ramiro; Harner, Margaret; Harner, Melanie; Horner, Pilar; Delva, Jorge

2013-01-01

The purpose of this article is to discuss how a community agency based in Washtenaw County, the Washtenaw Interfaith Coalition for Immigration Rights (WICIR), emerged in response to increasing punitive immigration practices and human rights abuses toward the Latino community. The article discusses how WICIR is engaged in advocacy, community…

Grassroots Heritage: A Multi-Method Investigation of How Social Media Sustain the Living Heritage of Historic Crises

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Sophia B.

2011-01-01

Unprecedented uses of information and communication technology (ICT) and particularly social media (e.g., Wikipedia, Facebook, and Twitter) are occurring in times of crisis. This dissertation investigates the socio-technical practices emerging from the use of social media and how these practices help to "sustain the living heritage" of…

A house officer-sponsored quality improvement initiative: leadership lessons and liabilities.

PubMed

Weingart, S N

1998-07-01

House officers play an important role in the care of hospitalized patients, yet they are infrequent participants in quality improvement (QI) activities. A grassroots QI initiative among medical house officers was implemented at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center's East Campus in Boston from 1995 through 1997. A group of house officer volunteers completed five of nine projects, including a survey that demonstrated frequent failures of cardiac monitor-defibrillators in the emergency room. Reaching out to key administrators produced several quick fixes. Developing effective, ongoing partnerships with clinical departments and QI professionals proved more problematic. Residency training programs that provide experience in QI give house officers a potentially valuable skill and an additional means to improve the quality of patient care. Yet many obstacles work against house officers' participation in QI initiatives, including long hours and the daily demands of patient care, rotating monthly assignments, and clinical leaders' assumption that they have little interest in QI. The organizers of the officer problem-solving group over-estimated the hospital resources at their disposal and failed to build mechanisms to ensure the initiative's continuation into its second year, when their own interest waned and no new group of leaders emerged to take their place. House officers represent an underused resource for QI. They are skilled at identifying problems but have difficulty executing sustained and complex QI initiatives. Peer leadership is a potent means to mobilize resident-physician participation but may require faculty or staff involvement and support to guarantee its continuity.

Health policy in a new key: setting democratic priorities.

PubMed

Jennings, B

1993-01-01

Health policy in the United States is entering an era in which explicitly value-based allocation decisions require direct attention. Policies concerning access to care, financing, and utilization management will necessarily have redistributive effects. For these policies to command social legitimacy and political support, some consensus will have to emerge around the values and ideals justifying these policies. This article addresses the problems of conceptual clarification and democratic process raised by the prospect of an explicitly value-based allocation policy. It offers a conceptual matrix distinguishing the scope of the issue of allocation in health care. Drawing on the activities of community health decisions projects in several states, it also offers suggestions about building a participatory and educational process at the grassroots level that might lead to a democratic consensus suitable for guiding policy choice.

An analysis of the determinants of family planning volunteer workers' performance in Iloilo City.

PubMed

David, F; Chin, F

1993-01-01

This report analyzes data from a survey of 106 Barangay (village) Service Point Officers (BSPOs) associated with the City Population Office and 106 Barangay Health Workers (BHWs) associated with the City Health Office to compare the family planning (FP) service delivery performance of these voluntary workers in Iloilo City in the Philippines and to quantify the effects of the factors which influence their performance. Both the BSPOs and the BHWs assist in the delivery of health and FP services at the grassroots level. The survey data were supplemented with interviews with key informants, focus group discussions with married couples of reproductive age, clinic records, and observations of the BSPOs and BHWs at work. The analysis compared the sociodemographic characteristics of the two groups; the recruitment procedures followed (if any); FP training; actual FP-related work; involvement in community organizing; incentives received; supervision of the volunteers; attitude towards their work; FP knowledge, attitude, and practice; time allocated to FP activities; number of clients served; and number of clients counseled. Correlation analysis of factors influencing volunteer performance indicated that FP training had the largest positive influence on FP activities. The output of the workers was also positively affected by the amount of time spend in FP activities and by their involvement in community organizing. The commitment of the workers had a significant impact on the number of clients they resupplied with contraceptives. Variation in the FP performances of the two groups was caused by the fact that delivery of FP services is a major role of the BSPOs and only one of many responsibilities of the BHWs. These findings reinforce the planned restructuring of Iloilo City's FP program which would once again designate the Population Office as the lead agency. Increasing the knowledge of these volunteers about the side effects and contraindications of various methods should have a positive effect on continuation rates. Recruitment of volunteers should be based on the individual's level of interest and commitment.

The Community for Data Integration (CDI): Building Knowledge, Networks, and Integrated Science Capacity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hsu, L.

2017-12-01

In 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey determined that a focused effort on data integration was necessary to capture the full scientific potential of its topically and geographically diverse data assets. The Community for Data Integration was established to fill this role, and an emphasis emerged on grassroots learning and solving of shared data integration and management challenges. Now, eight years later, the CDI has grown to over 700 members and runs monthly presentations, working groups, special training events, and an annual USGS-wide grants program. With a diverse membership of scientists, technologists, data managers, program managers, and others, there are a wide range of motivations and interests competing to drive the direction of the community. Therefore, an important role of the community coordinators is to prioritize member interests while valuing and considering many different viewpoints. To do this, new tools and mechanisms are frequently introduced to circulate information and obtain community input and feedback. The coordinators then match community interests with opportunities to address USGS priorities. As a result, the community has facilitated the implementation of USGS-wide data policies and data management procedures, produced guidelines and lessons learned for technologies like mobile applications and use of semantic web technologies, and developed technical recommendations to enable integrated science capacity for USGS leadership.

Reflections on Serving Remote Mountain Communities: Mobile Hospitals and Women's and Children's Health Care in Northern Haiti.

PubMed

Chierici, Rose-Marie; Voltaire, Thony Michelet

2016-12-01

In 2003 Alyans Sante Borgne's (ASB) conducted the first week-long mobile hospital in Molas, a poor mountain community a 10-h walk from the main hospital in the town of Borgne in North Haiti. ASB is a partnership between Haiti Outreach-Pwoje Espwa (H.O.P.E.), a US-based NGO, and Haiti's Ministry of Health. The paper reflects on this first experience and the evolution of an indigenous model of health care delivery, Sante Nan Lakou (SNL)/Health at the Extended Family Level, a model that prioritizes the needs of patients over those of the institution. It highlights the challenges of providing quality care to a much neglected segment of our population and documents the impact of this event for the community and for ASB. Lessons learned during that week shaped ASB's response to the root causes of women and children's poor health in the commune of Borgne. The response is articulated in a holistic grassroots program called Sante/Health, Edikasyon/Education, Ekonomi/Economy for Fanm/Women (SEE Fanm). SEE Fanm is a constellation of programs and initiatives that together brings quality care to women and seeks to empower them to take charge of their health and wellbeing and, by extension, that of their families and communities.

The Development of the Community University Movement in Taiwan: A Critical Review

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ho, Ching-Jung

2004-01-01

The Community University (CU) movement in Taiwan arose from calls for education reform and social change in the country since the last decade. In 1998 the first CU, Wenshan CU, operated by local activists and grass-roots groups, was established in Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, as an outgrowth of a popular rally for education reform in 1994.…

Vida/SIDA: A Grassroots Response to AIDS in Chicago's Puerto Rican Community

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanabria, Roberto

2004-01-01

Chicago's Puerto Rican community in West Town had a unique reaction to the spread of AIDS within its limits. They created their own institutions and tackled the epidemic themselves. In its infancy, Vida/SIDA, which translates as Life/AIDS, was solely an alternative health clinic for people with AIDS. Free of charge, it provided services such as…

H.E.L.L.A.: Collective "Testimonio" That Speak to the Healing, Empowerment, Love, Liberation, and Action Embodied by Social Justice Educators of Color

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pour-Khorshid, Farima

2016-01-01

This author utilizes collective "testimonio" (Sánchez, 2009) as a process for "homemade theory" making or what Anzaldúa and Keating (2000) called "conocimientos." This collective "testimonio" brings together the stories and experiences of three educators of color within a California grassroots social justice…

Power, Discourse, and Learning Global Citizenship: A Case Study of International NGOs and a Grassroots Movement in the Narmada Valley, India

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shukla, Natasha

2009-01-01

The field of transnational contestation conceptualized as global civil society (GCS) is gaining academic interest as a political "counter-force" against the exigencies of globalization. However, social actors within GCS occupy unequal positions of power in relation to each other. This article examines how the discourses of transnational action…

Making All Children Winners: Confronting Social Justice Issues to Redeem America's Soul

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Normore, Anthony H.; Rodriguez, Louie; Wynne, Joan

2007-01-01

Purpose: "If you have come to help me, you are wasting your time, but if you have come because your liberation is bound with mine, then come, let's work together". These words of Lill Watson, an indigenous activist, frame the context for this article. The purpose of this research was to examine the historical evolution of "grassroots movement…

Teaching to Transform, Transforming to Teach: Exploring the Role of Teachers in Human Rights Education in India

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bajaj, Monisha

2011-01-01

Background: Human rights education initiatives have proliferated in the past three decades and can be found in policy discussions, textbook reforms and grassroots initiatives across the globe. This article specifically explores the role of teachers in human rights education (HRE) by focusing on a case study of one non-governmental organisation's…

Is the Balanced School Day Truly Balanced? A Review of the Impacts on Children, Families, and School Food Environments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Theresa F.; Macaskill, Lesley A.; Salvadori, Marina I.; Dworatzek, Paula D. N.

2015-01-01

Background: The Balanced School Day (BSD) is a scheduling policy that has the potential to impact children's food behaviors because students are provided with two 20-minute eating opportunities versus the traditional 20-minute lunch. Methods: We aim to raise awareness of this grassroots academic policy and its potential consequences to inform…

The Grassroots Community in the Vanguard of Inclusion: The Post-Genocide Rwandan Prospects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karangwa, Evariste; Ghesquiere, Pol; Devlieger, Patrick

2007-01-01

More than a decade has passed since Rwanda was plunged into the most atrocious genocide of our time. Hundreds of thousands of lives were lost and many more were left in desperate conditions. The economic and social reconstruction of the country has since dominated the national agenda for recovery. It is within this reform agenda that this paper…

New Orleans Education Reform: A Guide for Cities or a Warning for Communities? (Grassroots Lessons Learned, 2005-2012)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buras, Kristen L.

2013-01-01

Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu, co-chair of the Senate Public Charter School Caucus in Washington, DC, hosted a forum for education policymakers. It centered on "New Orleans-Style Education Reform: A Guide for Cities (Lessons Learned, 2004-2010)," a report published by the charter school incubator New Schools for New Orleans (NSNO).…