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Within the context of global climate change and soaring energy prices, people are searching for inexpensive and renewable sources of energy; therefore, burning wood for home heating is increasing. Woodsmoke contains substances known to harm human health and is a major contributor to air pollution in many parts of the world; yet there is limited research into the health effects of woodsmoke and existing research suffers from methodological constraints. As a result, there is interest in producing robust woodsmoke exposure estimates for health research and air quality management purposes. Studying health and the environment is inherently spatial; however, research related to air pollution and health tends to be aspatial. As investigators begin to understand the influence of spatial processes on research findings, the importance of adopting a spatial approach to modelling exposure and health risk is becoming apparent. This thesis describes a spatially explicit model for predicting fine particulate matter (PM2.5) attributable to woodsmoke from residential heating in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Spatially resolved measurements of PM2.5 were collected for 32 evenings during the winter heating seasons of 2004/05, 2005/06, 2006/07 using a nephelometer installed in a passenger vehicle. Positional data were collected concurrently using a Global Positioning System (GPS). Levoglucosan, a chemical unique to woodsmoke, was measured to confirm the presence of woodsmoke in the measured PM2.5. The spatial scale for the analysis of woodsmoke data was determined using semivariograms to identify the maximum distance of spatial dependence in the data which typically occurred near 2700m. Different spatial approaches for modelling woodsmoke concentrations were evaluated both qualitatively in terms of transferability, meeting statistical assumptions, and potential for exposure misclassification; and quantitatively to assess the association between the model’s predicted PM2.5 concentrations and observed PM2.5. The baseline model characterized exposure based on the PM2.5 value from the closest fixed monitor (R=0.51, α=0.05). The Krigged model produced a seasonal average surface based on nephelometer measurements and showed the weakest performance (R=0.25, α=0.05). The regression models predicted concentrations of woodsmoke based on predictor variables available from census data, typically used in health research, and spatial property assessment data (SPAD), an underused data source at a finer spatial resolution. Different approaches to regression modelling were investigated. A regression model already developed for Victoria performed the best quantitatively (R=0.84, α=0.05); however, qualitative considerations precluded it from being selected as an appropriate model. A quantitatively (R=0.62, α=0.05) and qualitatively robust regression model was developed using SPAD (M6). SPAD improved the spatial resolution and model performance over census data. Removing spatial and temporal autocorrelation in the data prior to modelling produced the most robust model as opposed to modelling spatial effects post regression. A Bayesian approach to M6 was applied; however, model performance remained unchanged (R=0.62, α=0.05). The spatial distribution of susceptibility to health problems associated with woodsmoke was derived from census data relating to population, age and income. Intersecting the exposure model with population susceptibility in a Geographic Information System (GIS) identified areas at high risk for health effects attributable to woodsmoke.

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to develop a clearer understanding of how involvement with the Association of Graduate Education Students (AGES) at the University of Victoria effects students' experiences of graduate school. Participants included graduate students who belonged to the AGES committee between 2001 and 2005 and faculty members who interacted with those members and supported program initiatives. Faculty participants were purposefully selected following the student interviews as important influences on the development of AGES. AGES records, including meeting minutes and a growth plan were accessed during the research. Key findings included the effect of short-term leadership on the development of the organizing committee; the important role that faculty members played in the health of a student organization, and the importance of social events when you leave your career cloak behind to become a full-time graduate student.

Health promotion identifies health as a resource for daily living and emphasizes the reciprocal relationship between people and their environments in creating health (MacDonald, 2002). In this thesis. I explore how community gardening programs can be used to improve the health and well being of vulnerable populations by creating positive changes within their physical and social environments. Furthermore, I address how community gardens can educate and empower these populations to live healthier lifestyles. My research is based on the creation and exploration of a project in Victoria. BC, where homeowners share their backyard vegetable gardens with volunteer gardeners. It is a small-scale qualitative study in the tradition of ethnographic research where the aim is to enhance understanding of phenomena (Johnston, Gregory, Pratt, & Watts. 2000. p. 238). I facilitated the project and monitored the progress of three garden partnerships for six months during Victoria's long growing season in 2005. Using in-depth interviews and participant observation techniques. I was able to come to a deeper understanding of the participants' experience of the project. This thesis addresses how the project may have promoted their health and well-being with specific reference to physical, psychological and social health and well-being. Suggestions for improvements for future application of the project are also provided.

The sociocultural economic, and political participation of girls has become a prevalent focus of policy. research, and practice. Despite their increasing visibility in the demographic composition of Canadian society. however, racialized minority girls remain largely invisible in these debates. Monolithic discourses of girl power. 'at risk' girls. youth participation and feminist activism do not account for the complex and uneven ways in which minority girls engage as knowledge producers, advocates, and community participants within cultural contexts that foster the depoliticization and social exclusion of young women of colour. Minority girls face intersecting barriers to civic participation and social inclusion `on their own terms' related to race. gender. age, citizenship. language, class and religion, among other factors. As rapid global change reconfigures girls' local realities and thus their practices of engagement, our traditional models and discourses of participation must be expanded. To problematize the relations of power under which minority girls constitute their practices of engagement and community building. I constructed a transdisciplinary conceptual framework grounded in postcolonial and transnational feminist theories. The research examined minority girls' practices of 'transformative engagement' (TE) in a collaborative, community-based, feminist Participatory Action Research project entitled "It's About Us." The study was based in Victoria. British Columbia. a predominantly Euro-Western Canadian city. "It's About Us" responded to minority girls' requests for a minority- and girl-centered epistemic space from which to explore their experiences of gendered racialization. Expressive methods including popular theatre. photography. and art served as vehicles for their engagement. The iterative feminist research design yielded data garnered from focus groups. theatre sessions. and scripts. participant-observation, journaling and photo-ethnography. This design provided the enabling conditions to deepen and sustain the girls' practices of oppositional agency and thus the emergence of transformative engagement. I developed an Interpretive Spiral Model (ISM) to extricate the difficulties of translating a feminist conceptual framework into a sustainable girl-centered project. My findings characterize transformative engagement as a multisited. precarious, generative form of praxis, rather than a formulaic process with guaranteed outcomes. I propose that the facilitation of transformative engagement entails four intersecting strategies: border crossing into exclusionary spaces. resources. and lines of power; developing safe, strategic communities of belonging: producing disruptive. critical knowledge; and engaging in public and social action. Overall. the girls' strategies of transformative engagement reveal a spectrum of subversive, deeply contextualized, multifaceted feminisms congruent with their own needs and experiences. The transformative engagement process resulted in multiple successful outcomes including theatre and conference presentations, media and website productions, and, most notably, contribution to the creation of a network of over 100 racialized girls and women called Anti-dote. The research findings illustrate how girl-centered. feminist action research can provide avenues to support minority girls' unique practices of resistance and social change. and feature their voices more prominently in community, policy, research, and practice.

This thesis examines the invasiveness of English ivy (Hedera helix L..: Araliaceae). an exotic horticultural species, in 14 near-urban parks in Greater Victoria. British Columbia. Using descriptive notes from field observations, the overall invasiveness of H. helix is assessed in each park, particularly near park boundaries. Land use associated with the fragmentation of natural habitat directly outside each park is characterised and related to invasion inside the park. Only three of the 14 representative parks examined are not invaded by P. helix. and four are very extensively invaded. ' The analysis of administrative park boundaries supports the hypothesis that H. helix begins invasion inside park boundaries that are adjacent to established residential areas. H. helix is found in moist forest communities of grand fir (Abies grandis) bigleaf maple (Acer macrophyllum) and western redcedar (Thuja plicata). Communities c f Garry oak (Quercus garryana) with black hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii) and English hawthorn (C. monogyna) are heavily invaded and vulnerable to invasion' However. Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) forest communities are most heavily invaded and especially at risk of invasion. H helix climbs at least 17 species of trees and tall shrubs. with Douglas-fir trees providing the tallest supports. Other areas in parks vulnerable to invasion by H. helix include woodlands with rich soils, slight canopy gaps. windthrown forest edges, park entranceways and accessways. During the growth season, H. helix shoots were monitored in both heavily and less invaded sites. On average, shoots on the forest floor grew 22 cm per month. and on host trees, shoots grew 17 cm per month. Another growth characteristic of H. helix is that where it is long established on host trees, its stems have radial growth rings viewable in cross-section. These rings are likely annual and sensitive to annual climatic variability. The spread of an introduced liana, a plant form not present in the indigenous flora, has several implications for near-urban forest ecology including altered physical forest structure, hastened tree death and suppression of understory species (e.g. seedlings and shrub species such as salal - Gaultheria shallon and possibly red huckleberry - Vaccinium parvifolium). The increased concentration and range of exotic, horticultural species such as H. helix, in near-urban park and forest fragments, signifies that an exotic species management strategy is urgently needed for habitat and ecosystem conservation.

This thesis documents and highlights - within the context of other exclusionary practices - some of the spatial and architectural strategies deployed by the government and the privileged classes to exclude and evict homeless citizens from the spaces of the city. Although various spatial scales are incorporated into the argument - from the national to the municipal - this investigation focuses primarily on the Capital Region of British Columbia and the City of Victoria, where much of the statistical and empirical research has been gleaned. Through the implementation of regressive legislation, oppressive urban planning, and exclusionary architectural design, the visible and abject homeless body is systematically concealed, wrongfully prohibited, or violently evicted from private and public space. Indeed, not only are homeless citizens denied a fundamental right to a private space of secure, adequate, and affordable housing, they are also denied fundamental political and physical rights to the public spaces of the city.

The future of environmental conservation ultimately depends on the collective impact of actions taken by individuals. While many people choose to engage in environmentally responsible behaviours, such as recycling or using public transit, some people are going a step further by volunteering with environmental organizations. These environmental volunteers undertake a variety of roles that are essential to the overall functioning and program delivery of most nonprofit environmental organizations. A major challenge of using volunteers can be the rate of volunteer turnover which increases the need to recruit and train new volunteers. Drawing on past volunteer motivation and satisfaction research, this study seeks to better understand what motivates environmental volunteers and to identify what factors contribute to volunteer satisfaction and retention. A questionnaire with Likert scale and open ended questions was completed by 148 environmental volunteers in the Victoria Capital Regional District. Factor analysis of the survey responses identified nine potential motives for volunteering with environmental organizations: Career, Environmental Values, Personal Growth, Protective, Social Norms, Social Interests, Efficacy, and Independence. The identified motivational factors were used to develop a cluster analysis, which identified six potential groupings or types of individuals attracted to volunteering with environment and conservation organizations. The six groupings identified were Practical Environmentalists, Concerned Environmentalist, Career Environmentalist, Budding Idealist, Social Environmentalist, and Other Helpers. Questions regarding volunteer satisfaction identified six factors that affect volunteer satisfaction: Organization Satisfaction, Individual Freedom, Personal Contribution, Environmental Impact, Intrinsic Rewards, and Personal Benefits. Satisfaction with these factors, however, was not enough to predict volunteer retention. Barriers to volunteering, such as health, location of volunteer activities, and other commitments also contribute to discontinuation of volunteer service. The results of this study can be useful for volunteer management and organization of volunteer programs in order to recruit and maintain satisfied volunteers.

This study evaluated anticipated changes to quality of life (QoL) from a reduction in private vehicle use, and the impact of social normative information on willingness to change transportation behaviour. Staff and students at the University of Victoria completed transport journals for a month, and participants in the low or high social norm condition received divergent information about the percentage of others who had switched to sustainable commuting. Unexpectedly, message content did not predict behavioural change, but mere receipt of a message, versus the control condition, did predict change. The results suggest that sustainable transport campaigns should highlight others‟ cooperation, regardless of their rate of cooperation, and target commuting behavior. Also, participants expected decreases to individually relevant QoL items and improvements to collectively relevant QoL items under a hypothetical reduction in private vehicle use. The findings may be employed by policy-makers to increase acceptance of transportation policies.

Composting of biodegradable waste is an effective means of reducing landfill garbage and improving the state of our environment. The widespread adoption of this behaviour by community members is subject to various social psychological processes. Table top signs outlining a pro-composting injunctive norm, and models demonstrating the behaviour (descriptive norm) were employed in two shopping centre food courts and a fast food restaurant to attempt to increase the use of public compost bins. When diners viewed models composting ahead of them, they were more likely to compost as well. However, the signs had no effect on composting rates, either alone or in combination with the models. Results support the idea that behaving in a pro-environmental manner around others can have an influence on them to behave pro-environmentally as well.