Considering current urban challenges within the United States, the stewardship of massive, unsustainable living and consumption, collaborative cohousing communities appear to hold substantial potential as agents of change delivering sustainable-oriented lifestyles. This research examines the internal drives that intervene in adopting environmentally friendly habits and explores how they are facilitated inside this type of residence. In order to observe the benefits and limitations of this type of degrowth-oriented housing, this study covers the transformative learning experiences within cohousing residents through the conduction of semi-structured interviews as the primary method. For this research, two cohousing communities have been selected in the states of Vermont and Iowa.  Throughout the study, different drives associated with the attainment of sustainable environments have been identified. Among them, we find drives connected to the built space and the social organisation of the communities. Emphasis is also given to the internal strategies by which these drives intervene in the materialisation of environmentally friendly lifestyles. The study points out those drives that deem cohousing a beneficial tool to challenge existing economic norms and social paradigms. This study can serve as the basis for further research exploring the possibilities of considering the depicted drives as guiding models for sustainable living among more traditional forms of housing.

Magister Artium - MA / The purpose of this study is to investigate how subject PRO of the infinitive in Sesotho is assigned an antecedent The general framework which is assumed is the Government Binding theory of generative grammar, in particular one of its subtheories, namely the Control theory which is concerned with the assignment of an antecedent to the subject PRO in the infinitive. A survey of the work done by various linguists on the Infinitive in Bantu languages shows that much has been written on the properties of the infinitive. In the Nguni languages, especially in Xhosa, considerable research has been done to establish the syntactic nature of the infinitive in the various constructions that it may occur. The Infinitive in Sesotho has, however, not been studied extensively. The central issue of this study relates to establishing the antecedent of the subject PRO of the infinitive in the various constructions in which it may appear. It is demonstrated that in some instances it is possible for two different NP arguments in a sentence to serve as a possible antecedent of the empty category PRO. This examination of control of the subject PRO in the infinitive in Sesotho has revealed the following: The subject PRO in the infinitive must have antecedent. In such cases the empty category PRO which is obligatory control is considered to behave like an anaphor, because as an empty of the clausal complement it must take its referential index from either the subject or object argument of the matrix sentence. This implies that the empty category PRO has no capacity for independent reference. 2. The subject PRO in the infinitive may have an In such cases the empty category PRO which is subject to non-obligatory control is considered to behave like a pronoun, because the empty category PRO may either refer to individuals independently or co-refer to individuals already named on a given sentence. Finally the subject PRO in the infinitive can at times have no antecedent at all In such cases the empty category PRO is subject to arbitrary control, because its antecedent may be implicit This has been established in the following instances: 3.1 There are cases where the infinitive is a complement of a Verb or a Copulative with the subject position occupied by an empty existential pronominal which is associated with the existential morpheme Ho. This pronominal is an empty category just like PRO, but is in a non-argument position, for it lacks a thetha-role. This is attributed to the fact that the existential pronominal associated with Ho, which signifies "it" or "there" is a dummy element and has therefore no semantic role. Therefore the antecedent of the subject PRO in the infinitive can be "anyone in general". The interpretation thereof is known as arbitrary control. It has also been established that, the Nominal infinitive, which has in Sesotho, like all other nominals, a class prefix which is morphologically marked with a prefix Ho, is subject to arbitrary control (see 3 above). This is attributed to the fact that its subject NP-argument has a non-referential expression which is thus ungoverned, because it has no agreement (-AGR) and can therefore not be assigned Case.

Climate change is a major threat and human activity has beenone of the main contributing factors to climate change. Whilesome previous research has focused on certain personality traitsand environmental behavior, there hasn’t been much researchfocusing on the relationship between empathy as a trait andpro-environmental behavior. The present study aimed toinvestigate this relationship between empathy as a trait andpro-environmental behavior in Sweden with political orientationas a control variable. Participants (N=110) were asked to answer14 statements measuring empathy as a trait and another 14statements measuring pro-environmental behavior of a 5 pointLikert scale. The results showed a significantly positivecorrelation between these two variables. Also, an individual’spolitical orientation was an important underlying factor to therelationship. The findings from the study contributed additionalinformation to this relationship in Sweden. With these results,we hope to raise awareness for further research in the area sothat pro-environmental behavior can be effectively promoted

Pekárek, O. Consumer behaviour on the market with sports nutrition supplements. Diploma thesis. Brno: Mendel University, 2020. This thesis deals with the consumer behaviour of generation Y on the market with sports nutrition supplements. The aim of the thesis is to identify factors that influence consumer behaviour on the market of sports nutrition supplements and based on those, set recommendations for subjects operating on the market. The fulfilment of the objective is preceded by the analysis of secondary data, which is mainly focused on the examination of the sports nutrition supplements market in the Czech Republic and the European Union. This is followed by primary research using a questionnaire survey which reveals factors influencing consumer behaviour on the market of sports nutrition supplements. The acquired data are used to create segments based on which are recommendations for subjects of the market being formulated.

INTRODUCTION: Specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators (SPM) such as resolvin-D1 (RvD1) act to resolve vascular inflammation and may guard against the progression of restenosis following cardiovascular interventions. Stimulating synthesis of these mediators directly in vascular cells may increase their local availability, and thus, protect against restenotic injury. However, the ability of endothelial (EC) and vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) to produce SPMs from their polyunsaturated fatty acid precursor decosahexaenoic acid (DHA) via lipoxygenase (LO) enzymatic transformation remains unknown. We sought to determine whether vascular cells produce SPMs from DHA and, if they do, how inflammation and mechanical injury of the vasculature alter biosynthesis. METHODS: Primary cultures of human saphenous vein endothelial and smooth muscle cells were treated with DHA in cell culture media (+ 10% serum) for 4h-24h. Freshly dissected rabbit aorta was incubated intact or following gentle endothelial denudation in cell culture media (+10% serum) with or without DHA for 48h. SPM levels in media were quantified by LC-MS/MS and ELISA and lipoxygenase expression and localization were assessed by western blotting and immunofluorescence staining, respectively. RESULTS: EC and SMC receiving media without DHA did not synthesize SPMs within the detection limits of the assay, whereas DHA treatment produced 17-HDHA, 14-HDHA, Mar1, RvD5, RvD2, and a dose and time-dependent increase in RvD1 production in EC (10.1 ±1.0 pg for 1000nM at 24h) and SMC (7.4 ± 0.2 pg for 1000nM at 24h). Intact rabbit aorta incubated in DHA+ media produced 0.24 ± 0.05 pg RvD1/mg tissue whereas aorta incubated in DHA− media produced 0.13 ± 0.007 pg RvD1/mg tissue. Moreover, EC-denuded aortas produced less RvD1/mg tissue than intact aortas. 5-LO was expressed in both cell types, however DHA induced 5-LO expression in EC (1.3 fold -DHA) but not in SMC. DHA promoted a nuclear to cytoplasmic shift of 5-LO in both EC and SMC. Finally, TNF-α stimulated an increase in RvD1 production in EC. CONCLUSIONS: Human vascular cells and rabbit vascular tissue can biosynthesize SPMs de novo from their precursor DHA, signifying a new source of SPMs in the vasculature.

Workplace sexual harassment in Cote d'Ivoire has been documented as extensive and commonplace, yet in West African nations, sexual harassment is not well studied or understood. Specifically, little is known about whether intervention programs instituted by the Ivorian law under Act No.98-756 forbid sexual harassment are viewed by female workers as effective. Using Hendricks and Valasek's theory on gender mainstreaming as the foundation, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the perceptions of female workers in Cote d'Ivoire related the effectiveness of sexual harassment training programs. Data for this study were collected from 15 women who worked in public or nonprofit organizations in Cote d'Ivoire. Data were inductively coded and then subjected to a thematic analysis procedure. Key findings indicated that interviewees believed that exposure to sexual harassment in the workplace results in a loss of trust in the work environment and reductions in work productivity. Further, participants generally agreed that intervention programs are promising in terms of ameliorating the effects of sexual harassment and gender discrimination in the workplace. The positive social change implications stemming from this study include recommendations to local governments in Cote d'Ivoire to develop municipal ordinances that support the investigation and prosecution of workplace sexual harassment and individual organizations should design workplace policies to efficiently and effectively handle complaints of sexual harassment.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between bullying behaviors, as measured by the Personal Experiences Checklist (PECK), and resilience, as measured by the Social Emotional Assets and Resilience Scales (SEARS), as well as whether the prosocial behaviors of controling anger, solving problems, and cooperating with others during activities mitigated the effects of bullying behaviors. A relationship between bullying behaviors and resiliency in children has been shown in past research. The theoretical framework for this study was social learning theory. The foundation of social learning theory is that children learned behaviors by imitating the behaviors of others. A sample of 8- to 11-year-old students from local primary schools in Bermuda completed the PECK and the SEARS. Simple regression, multiple regression, and ANOVA were used to analytically examine the relationship between variables. The findings of this study built on existing research, which suggested that children who were more resilient and exhibited more prosocial behaviors, experienced less victimization through bullying. In this study, it was found that the more children were bullied, the less resilient they were. The results of this study have the potential for positive social change through being used for the development and implementation of appropriate social and emotional learning programs. The long-term results of such programs include the reduction of bullying behavior during childhood, adolescent, and adult years, with children having more control over their behaviors, reducing their involvement with the justice system both in their childhood and adult years.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / This two-article, mixed-methods dissertation examines social contextual influences on donor and fundraiser behavior. It presents an extension of the Charitable Triad Model to conceptualize philanthropic behavior as a contextualized act informed by the social context shared among and between fundraisers, donors, beneficiaries, and organizations. The first article extends research on how social identity shapes donor behavior. This work finds that people are more likely to donate when they share identities, experiences, or group affiliations with beneficiaries. However, donors make philanthropic decisions in the context of multiple—and sometimes incongruent—identities. How might this complexity affect philanthropic behavior? I apply an intersectional approach to consider donors holding two simultaneous yet seemingly incongruent social identities. Using interviews analyzed with grounded theory, I examine the philanthropic journey of twenty Catholic women who donate to pro-choice organizations and identify as pro-choice activists. I uncover a common process shared by the donors as they navigate their seemingly incompatible identities. Findings reveal implications for fundraisers seeking to understand donors and for organizations that address controversial causes. The second article uses an experimental design with professional fundraisers to test how the presence of a teammate affects the performance of a common fundraising task, that of writing a charitable appeal letter. A large body of research in non-fundraising domains finds that working in a team versus alone can positively affect performance and team members’ satisfaction. Further, new research finds that fundraisers who feel like they fit with their environment have higher satisfaction and retention. However, no known research has examined the role of the social environment in fundraisers’ crafting of charitable appeals. Using person-environment-fit theory, we randomly assign fundraisers to work in a team versus alone to examine how this affects their satisfaction with the task, as well as the content of the letter produced. Results suggest implications for the management of development teams. Overall, this dissertation provides evidence-based insights to improve fundraising practice.

To secure the growing energy demand due to the rise in population and technological advancements, countries worldwide are looking for alternatives or complementary generation sources to support the existing grid infrastructure and power generating system. The increase in global temperature and climate change forces each country to switch to clean energy production.  Among the renewable energy sources, the Floating Photovoltaic (FPV) market is flourishing in various countries. It is a good source of power generation avoiding land constraint issues and adding extra benefits like cooling of panels and reducing evaporation and algal bloom problems of water sources where it is installed. In fact, as a part of a complementary generation, the idea of using unused reservoir water surface of reservoir for the deployment of photovoltaic (PV) is a considerable solution for meeting energy demand.  As hydropower and PV are dispatchable and non-dispatchable sources of energy, they can complement each other well. The floating PV and hydropower basics and factors that complement their mutual operation are discussed in this research work with a literature review. Case studies of tropical and mediterranean climatic countries like Myanmar and Albania are analyzed using HOMER Pro. The various challenges associated with this hybrid hydro-floating PV project are evaluated using risk analysis, and the highest risk elements are identified.