In recent years the increasing demand for fuel efficient and less pollutant vehicles has stimulated the development of hybrid and electric vehicles. These vehicle platforms often incorporate drivetrains which utilize multiple power sources for vehicle propulsion in an effort to increase fuel mileage and reduce emissions. Coupling multiple power sources, such as an internal combustion engine and electric motor(s), has new challenges in drivetrain design. Understanding the torque and rpm relationships within the power transmission device used to combine power sources is fundamental to overcoming the design challenges associated with hybrid and electric vehicle platforms. Results from this research include the fundamental torque and rpm relationships that exist in a multiple-input, single-output power transmission device. These results were deduced from a test that incorporated two separate power inputs into a differential which combined to produce a single output. Testing displayed that a differential has the ability to function as an infinitely variable transmission (IVT). Additionally, the challenges associated with using a differential as a multiple-input, single-output device were identified. Recommendations for overcoming these challenges are also presented herein. This work provides the basis for future work in powertrain optimization for multiple-input, single-output transmission devices.

Master of Public Health / Human Nutrition / Sandra B. Procter / Background: Engaging community has become a fundamental approach to improving health outcomes in resource-limited settings. Community coalitions, comprised of resident activists that mobilize to improve local conditions, are frequently utilized as partners for community-engaged research. However, there is limited research that documents how these partnerships affect the coalitions. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of researcher-coalition collaboration in the pilot year of a four-year intervention program targeting childhood obesity in rural, low-income communities. Methods: Twelve pre-established community coalitions from seven states were selected to partner with academic researchers in a quasi-experimental study, and then assigned to either the control (n=6) or intervention (n=6) group. Both study arms received funding and access to a menu of evidence-based tools, but the intervention groups were also provided a trained community coach. Member survey data from a Coalition Self-Assessment Survey (CSAS) tool was completed at baseline and at one-year follow-up. Results: CSAS data were analyzed to identify factors related to coalition function and efficacy, and significant changes in both experimental groups were identified. Change in measures of membership recruitment, coalition capacity and coalition communication were unique to the intervention group. Problems for participation were alleviated significantly on all measures in the control group. Comparison of the study groups at follow-up demonstrated that greater research involvement positively impacted membership recruitment and coalition action plan. Conclusion: The data suggest that coalitions with a higher degree of partnership interaction may be more successful in addressing problems impacting their communities.

In African folklore, there is a Swahili tale which depicts the relationship between a monkey and a shark; a story about the needs of two creatures living in two different worlds. The shark needs the heart of the monkey to give to his king and the monkey agrees to go on the journey to learn and experience new things. Unaware of each other’s intentions and goals they fall prey to a relationship of mutual distrust and suspicion. Many opportunities to use art as a tool for social engagement through service-learning exist in Higher Education. However, good intentions do not always equal good outcomes. The story above illustrates the importance of open communication around goals and motives. My past experiences in community engagement projects have taught me that more harm than good can result when communities are not involved in relationship-building and decision-making processes which affect them. It is therefore imperative that students collaborate with communities in every phase of the engagement process, so that they will learn and benefit from each other in meaningful ways. This qualitative research explores and describes the engagement between Intermediate Phase education students and community youth, the findings of which will be used to design a service-learning module in Creative Arts. The aims of the study were (i) to explore what the students and the community participants can learn from such a process, (ii) to explore what aspects of the engagement process can enhance the attainment of mutually beneficial learning outcomes, and which detract from it, and (iii) based on the findings, to suggest recommendations that can inform the development and design of a future service-learning module in Creative Arts programmes for teacher educators. A qualitative design situated within a critical theoretical paradigm employing a participatory action research approach to inquiry was utilised to achieve the aims of the study. Availability sampling was used to select participants in the engagement between the campus students from the Creative Arts department in the faculty of Education Sciences at the North West University (NWU) Potchefstroom, and the community youths from a nearby township area. The data generation process consisted of four cycles which embraced seven interactive activities, including visual, oral, art, and text-based techniques that were employed in a participatory process. Semi-structured reflective interviews towards the end concluded the research study. Data documentation was obtained through verbatim transcriptions of video clips, visual diaries, and visual charts. The engagement process was systematically monitored, inductively analysed, and thematically interpreted. Trustworthiness was verified by overlapping and multiple data generation strategies, and maintained by reflective member checking and own critical reflections on the process. Ethical requirements included the approval of the Ethics Committee of the NWU Faculty of Educational Sciences, Potchefstroom campus. Signed consent of participants was obtained in writing before the data generation began. Consent was obtained from the participants for visual material to be used for the research study and the presentations thereof. Three themes emerged from the data collection. Theme 1: the process allowed participants to gain insight into each other’s worlds. Theme 2: the participatory action research (PAR) process shifted power relations. Theme 3: the participants experienced personal and professional development through the interactive process. My findings on the student-community youth engagement suggest that the participatory (PAR) process is well suited for socially engaged art-based practices in service-learning as it promotes reciprocal learning through interactive activities. The activities unlocked value-laden and meaningful learning between the participants. Working collaboratively and in groups benefitted the participants in several ways. They gained confidence and self-determination, began to understand each other, improved personal and working relations, and increased their level of professional development. Limiting aspects included language barriers, short time frames, and unpredictable community events. The role of the researcher as change agent required shared leadership of collaborative groupwork, and it was necessary to structure topics in service-learning that evoke challenging and critical responses between participants from diverse backgrounds. These findings have significance for the design and development of a service-learning module for Creative Arts education, provide recommendations for future community partnerships in art-based practices, and for further research in service-learning. / MEd (Curriculum Development), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

In African folklore, there is a Swahili tale which depicts the relationship between a monkey and a shark; a story about the needs of two creatures living in two different worlds. The shark needs the heart of the monkey to give to his king and the monkey agrees to go on the journey to learn and experience new things. Unaware of each other’s intentions and goals they fall prey to a relationship of mutual distrust and suspicion. Many opportunities to use art as a tool for social engagement through service-learning exist in Higher Education. However, good intentions do not always equal good outcomes. The story above illustrates the importance of open communication around goals and motives. My past experiences in community engagement projects have taught me that more harm than good can result when communities are not involved in relationship-building and decision-making processes which affect them. It is therefore imperative that students collaborate with communities in every phase of the engagement process, so that they will learn and benefit from each other in meaningful ways. This qualitative research explores and describes the engagement between Intermediate Phase education students and community youth, the findings of which will be used to design a service-learning module in Creative Arts. The aims of the study were (i) to explore what the students and the community participants can learn from such a process, (ii) to explore what aspects of the engagement process can enhance the attainment of mutually beneficial learning outcomes, and which detract from it, and (iii) based on the findings, to suggest recommendations that can inform the development and design of a future service-learning module in Creative Arts programmes for teacher educators. A qualitative design situated within a critical theoretical paradigm employing a participatory action research approach to inquiry was utilised to achieve the aims of the study. Availability sampling was used to select participants in the engagement between the campus students from the Creative Arts department in the faculty of Education Sciences at the North West University (NWU) Potchefstroom, and the community youths from a nearby township area. The data generation process consisted of four cycles which embraced seven interactive activities, including visual, oral, art, and text-based techniques that were employed in a participatory process. Semi-structured reflective interviews towards the end concluded the research study. Data documentation was obtained through verbatim transcriptions of video clips, visual diaries, and visual charts. The engagement process was systematically monitored, inductively analysed, and thematically interpreted. Trustworthiness was verified by overlapping and multiple data generation strategies, and maintained by reflective member checking and own critical reflections on the process. Ethical requirements included the approval of the Ethics Committee of the NWU Faculty of Educational Sciences, Potchefstroom campus. Signed consent of participants was obtained in writing before the data generation began. Consent was obtained from the participants for visual material to be used for the research study and the presentations thereof. Three themes emerged from the data collection. Theme 1: the process allowed participants to gain insight into each other’s worlds. Theme 2: the participatory action research (PAR) process shifted power relations. Theme 3: the participants experienced personal and professional development through the interactive process. My findings on the student-community youth engagement suggest that the participatory (PAR) process is well suited for socially engaged art-based practices in service-learning as it promotes reciprocal learning through interactive activities. The activities unlocked value-laden and meaningful learning between the participants. Working collaboratively and in groups benefitted the participants in several ways. They gained confidence and self-determination, began to understand each other, improved personal and working relations, and increased their level of professional development. Limiting aspects included language barriers, short time frames, and unpredictable community events. The role of the researcher as change agent required shared leadership of collaborative groupwork, and it was necessary to structure topics in service-learning that evoke challenging and critical responses between participants from diverse backgrounds. These findings have significance for the design and development of a service-learning module for Creative Arts education, provide recommendations for future community partnerships in art-based practices, and for further research in service-learning. / MEd (Curriculum Development), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

By 2050, an estimated 6.3 billion people or 66% of the world population will live in cities. Therefore, cities are in a high impact position regarding sustainability. The question is, how do we increase awareness of the sustainability challenge among these populations and gain citywide buy-in and multi-stakeholder collaboration to address this challenge? The Sustainable City Year Program (SCYP) at the University of Oregon offers one approach to tackle this issue by matching higher education institutions (HEI’s), with local and regional cities to address their sustainability related needs through publicly engaged scholarship. The objective of this research was to examine how SCYP contributes to strategic sustainable development (SSD). Our research methods included a peer-reviewed literature review, semi-structured interviews, surveys and further document review. Our sources included SCYP co-founders, partner city program managers, strategic sustainable development experts, and municipal planners from around the world. Our research suggests that SCYP creates a subtle paradigm shift towards sustainability among partner city staff and community members while accelerating practical implementation of sustainability related projects. Furthermore, the added layer of SSD concepts can increase the efficacy of this approach and allow the model to embrace a larger systems level perspective over time.

The aim of this this diploma thesis is to explore the relationship between the art galleries and the public. The key focus is to analyze indispensable approaches galleries should employ in order to survive on the cultural market. Firstly, the thesis discusses the economic aspects with the particular focus on the value added to the management and marketing of galleries. The next part deals with the social aspects. In addition to the gallery visitors and the influence of gallery interior on the visitor, the division of art on commercial and non-commercial sphere is explored. Furthermore, the term "socially engaged art" will be specified. The final discussion then shows the previous research by presenting practical examples to illustrate the importance of the issue, particularly focusing on the Egon Schiele Art Center in Český Krumlov.

Na África francófona muitos intelectuais usaram a literatura e o cinema como veículos de exaltação aos valores culturais da terra, de transformação social e política. O escritor e cineasta Sembène Ousmane pode ser considerado um destes intelectuais, uma vez que por meio de uma vasta produção literária e cinematográfica abordou temas recorrentes à sociedade na qual pertencia, fazendo dessas duas artes importantes aliadas no seu percurso de militante. A presente pesquisa visa estudar de que maneira a novela e o filme homônimo La noire de... exprimiram a visão do escritor e cineasta sobre de identidade cultural do Senegal. Para tanto, discutiremos o projeto literário e cinematográfico de Sembène, levando em consideração o contexto político do Senegal e da França. Além disso, discutiremos também o conceito de pós-colonialismo, por entender que esse campo teórico é imperativo para se pensar a identidade cultural senegalesa. / In Francofone Africa lots of intellectuals used literature and film-making as means of exaltation to the lands cultural values, social and political transformation. The writer and film-maker Sembène Ousmane can be considered one of these intellectuals, once through a vast literary and film production brought current issues about the society he belonged to, allying these two important pieces of art in his millitant path. The present research aims to study in which way the novel and the eponymous film La noire de... expressed the vision of this writer and director about the cultural identity of Senegal. Therefore, the literary and film Project of Sembène will be discussed, taking into consideration the political context of Senegal and France. Furthermore, we will also discuss the post-colonialism concept, for understanding that this theoretical field is highly importante to think about the Senegalese cultural identity.

Doctor of Philosophy / Curriculum and Instruction Programs / F. Todd Goodson / Kay Ann Taylor / Library instruction in a university setting, in the primary manner it has been taught for decades, has a problem: the instruction is not teaching. Many library instruction sessions at universities are taught through a traditional lecture-style instruction session where students are allowed no voice in the classroom and there is no room for any evaluation of the information presented. Teaching without an engaged pedagogical framework without any active participation is problematic for teaching critical information literacy. This research focused on library instruction within higher education institutions and the choices made by instruction librarians to include (or not) critical pedagogy and critical information literacy within their teaching styles and classrooms. This study explored (a) the decisions of librarians to teach either in the traditional or critical library pedagogy manner and (b) barriers or encouragement in librarians’ choice to teach through a critical lens. With critical theory as the overarching framework and engaged pedagogy a central part to all these theories, critical engaged pedagogy combines critical race feminist theory, critical library pedagogy, and critical information literacy (the latter two frequently used interchangeably). The combined theoretical framework gives context for researching the reasons that instruction librarians choose (or do not) to implement these theoretical and pedagogical styles into their instruction of information literacy in classrooms. Using the qualitative methodology of narrative inquiry, specifically narrative analysis, this study analyzed and interpreted data from interviews, observational data, and field notes recorded in a reflexive journal through the lens of this theoretical framework. Findings showed that in their everyday experiences as academic instruction librarians, the participants faced both barriers and encouragement to their decisions regarding teaching methods and curriculum in addition to how they are impacting their students’ lives and learning. Four different themes emerged from the data. The first theme, sometimes a teacher, sometimes not, speaks to the struggle that the participants handled every day: though they were instruction librarians, they were not able to always feel as though they were real teachers or faculty on their campuses. The second theme, if only I had a choice, discusses how discipline faculty affect their teaching decisions and the participants’ goal to at least try to teach critical evaluation to the students. The third theme, teaching is a political act, focuses on participants’ teaching under a critical library instruction pedagogy, emphasizing their engagement with the students, the falsehood of neutrality, and teaching about marginalized groups, injustice, oppression, and similar political-minded concepts in their classes. The fourth theme, real world, lifelong skills, discusses how the participants view their impact on student learning and student lives in general, demonstrated through teaching students critical thinking and evaluation (of the real world) skills in addition to impacting students beyond the classroom.

Human activity modifies the behaviour of large vertebrates and their acquisition of key resources. Despite the predation risk and competition for similar food resources that humans impose, wildlife consumers must acquire key foods across the landscape. Predation risk can modify foraging behaviour, yet we know little about the potential consequences, especially on large spatial scales. Humans may also affect food availability for wildlife by competing for shared prey, which most current harvest prescriptions fail to recognize. Against this background of threats to consumer-resource interactions, my research employed new conceptual, analytical, and practical approaches to seek not only new generalizable insight but also applied solutions. Addressing these goals, I characterized foraging behaviour by grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) on a focal prey, Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.), at multiple spatial scales. I predicted how human activity – both as modifications to landscapes and as salmon harvest – might affect bear-salmon interactions. I co-conceived, designed, and carried out this work through a framework of community engagement, which I crafted in collaboration with Indigenous communities in coastal British Columbia (BC). The framework (Chapter 2) identifies how scientists and communities can engage throughout the research process to work towards shared priorities, despite potential challenges in differences of knowledge systems or capacities. Methodologically, I used ratios of stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotopes in bear hair to estimate relative contributions of salmon in the annual diet of bears and employed existing data on landscape modification and salmon fisheries (i.e., escapement and catch) to characterize human activity and to measure associated variation in salmon consumption by bears. My first empirical contribution (Chapter 3) characterized spatial patterns of annual salmon consumption by grizzly bears across BC. I found substantial differences in salmon consumption within and among grizzly and black (U. americanus) bears in a large coastal region and across BC. Visualizing variation in consumer-resource interactions could guide conservation and management efforts that seek to protect predator-prey associations and marine subsidies for terrestrial ecosystems. I also investigated potential drivers of salmon consumption by bears in interior and coastal watersheds that varied in disturbance (Chapter 4). I found that human footprint in riparian areas of salmon-bearing watersheds affected bear diets more than the amount of salmon biomass available, showing that human activity can disrupt an otherwise strong predator-prey association. My community-based research occurred at the scale of a single large watershed, where I demonstrated how the Wuikinuxv First Nation might design their salmon management prescriptions according to their cultural values (Chapter 5). Despite a reduced abundance of salmon in the area, I identified harvest options that would trade-off benefits to local people and bears equally. In general, my dissertation research contributes to our understanding of the role humans increasingly play in mediating consumer-resource interactions. I also highlight how scientific research can support the leadership that local management can provide in mitigating human impacts to sustain an iconic predator-prey interaction of ecological, economic, and cultural importance. / Graduate / 2020-04-23

In the Philippines, as in the US and UK and elsewhere, evangelical conversion is normally regarded as a ‘turning’ from a life ‘without Christ’ towards a life of ‘faith in Christ’. Traditionally, the potential convert is invited to ‘accept’ or ‘receive’ Christ as personal lord and saviour. Once a decision to ‘accept’ is indicated, the individual is considered ‘born again’ or ‘saved’, whereupon he or she is expected to manifest behavioural signs, such as participating actively in a ‘Bible-believing’ church, while adapting to its distinct ethos. This conversion, however, has not generally led to a commitment to issues of economic or social justice. In the years 1946-1986, Filipino evangelicals have tended to neglect the social question. This is consistently shown in their general silence during the 1972-81 martial law, the 1983 murder of Aquino and the 1986 people power revolution. Historically and theologically, this particularly conservative social disposition may have been influenced by a lopsided emphasis on aggressive evangelism and a general evasion of social questions, especially by US evangelical missionaries who carried the ‘baggage’ of the fundamentalist-modernist debate of the 1920s and 1930s. This theological orientation seems to have been perpetuated, one way or other, by their Filipino converts. That there are in the Philippines examples of previously socially-disengaged evangelical converts who eventually moved towards a socially-engaged path, however, seems to indicate the possibility of a theological re-orientation within this Christian tradition. This study tackles this particular ‘conversion’ or re-orientation within, not away from, the evangelical tradition, with the goal of shedding some light on the nature and possibility of a ‘second conversion’ towards a socially engaged posture. To explore this phenomenon of interest, the study identifies four different trajectories of change exemplified by particular theological pilgrimages travelled by Filipino evangelicals during their adult years. The first trajectory is about the development of a social conscience which benefited from an active involvement in an international evangelical student movement. The second represents a largely noncritical exposure made possible by a protracted career in medical missions that led to a similar awakening to social injustice. The third involves an evangelical who ended up accommodating Marxist social analysis. And the fourth concerns how an underprivileged evangelical managed to attain a second, more critical, perspective on poverty, leading to a commitment to combat economic injustice. These trajectories are explored through extensive interviews with each of the four subjects. Though necessarily limited in scope, the value of this study lies in its potential to gain some insights into factors that have the potential to ‘convert’ or ‘transform’ minds and ideological postures. It thus suggests that, at least in contexts of social and economic polarisation, the evangelical Protestant tradition may not be so inescapably tied to social and political conservatism as is often assumed. The study ends by drawing some wider conclusions about the possibility of a second conversion within the evangelical Protestant tradition.