The neoliberal political economy guiding our present food system has contributed to our present unsustainable situation, characterized by wicked problems such as environmental degradation, food insecurity and diet-related illness. Our current condition demands a new conception of sustainability to guide creative and counter-hegemonic interventions that can supplant the dominant oppressive structures and processes presently characterizing development efforts. While community gardens have been recognized as common grounds for food systems transformation, research has largely missed this opportunity for exploration. Drawing from the planetary and emancipatory frameworks of transformative learning, and a conception of sustainability rooted in life values, counter-hegemony, and social justice, this case study explores how a collective community garden is a critical pedagogy space for stakeholders to change their own reality within their food system. Using narrative inquiry as a methodology, I conducted semi-structured interviews with garden stakeholders (n=12). The lived experiences of study participants revealed the transformative potential of the Farmacy Garden rooted in the community food security movement. As a space that inspires critical consciousness for humanization, study participants deepened their awareness of new choices and possibilities in their food system rooted in life values. As a space that inspires social action for community economies, the Farmacy Garden promoted transactions rooted in reciprocity and gift-based exchange. Through critical hope and creative imagination for integral development, study participants are envisioning and exploring alternatives that can guide us in the challenging and contradictory work of "making new worlds" (Gibson-Graham, 2008, p. 628). / Master of Science in Life Sciences / The Farmacy Garden (FG) is a collective community garden built on public land in a small town in rural, southwest Virginia, with a mission to promote health, increase food security, and build community capacity among low-income residents in the region. As an educational garden funded within a public health context, the FG programs and evaluation parameters have prioritized health outcomes over other potential benefits of the site. This study embraces a whole-systems perspective, providing an opportunity to cultivate a richer understanding of the role the FG plays as a critical pedagogy space for sustainability and food systems transformation. Drawing on the planetary and emancipatory conceptions of transformative learning, and narrative inquiry as a methodology, this case study explores the perceptions and experiences of FG participants and practitioners (n=12) through story and critical reflection using semi-structured, narrative interviews. The lived experiences of these stakeholders reveals the FG's role as an educational site that enables participants and practitioners to cultivate new understandings of themselves, invigorate new forms of social action, and nurture new imaginaries that provoke possibilities beyond the current condition.

This thesis investigates the persistent decline of churches in the United States, particularly within the Northern Illinois Conference (NIC) of the United Methodist Church (UMC). Centered on the transformative capacities of radical hospitality and divine friendship, it explores the underlying causes of decline and advocates for a recalibration of the missional church. Drawing on pastoral experiences and insights from distinguished theologians, the research underscores the significance of leadership training in aligning with Imago Dei and Missio Dei. The study advocates for equipping leaders in fostering radical hospitality and divine friendship, envisioning a rejuvenated missional church that redefines its identity and pertinence in contemporary society through purposeful practices.

National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) are central instruments supporting developing countries in their adaptation efforts and enhancing climate resilience. As the NAP documents outline a country's vulnerabilities to climate change and planned adaptation strategies, it is essential to examine how the most vulnerable groups are considered. In the IPCC’s Sixth Synthesis Report, the concepts of maladaptation and transformational adaptation feature prominently, with prior research connecting these concepts to the inclusion of vulnerable groups in adaptation efforts.This thesis provides an in-depth assessment of how vulnerable groups and communities are considered in the three selected NAPs of Bhutan, the Marshall Islands, and Zambia. A normative theoretical framework, the maladaptation-transformative adaptation continuum, is developed from relevant academic research to examine the consideration of vulnerable groups and communities throughout the NAP. Utilising a deductive qualitative content analysis, the central elements of this framework will be operationalised to review the three selected NAP documents. The findings indicate that all of the examined NAPs take vulnerable groups and communities into account by explicitly identifying the most vulnerable social groups, and including adaptation actions that target these vulnerable groups. The inclusion of vulnerable groups and communities in the formulation process and the planned implementation of adaptation measures vary, reflecting different positions along the maladaptation-transformative adaptation continuum.

This study delved into the influence of the Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG), World of Warcraft, on players' real-life social interactions and skill development. Employing a mixed-methods approach that combined surveys and structured interviews, our findings suggested that World of Warcraft is a vibrant hub for socialisation and group activities, particularly among young adults. Our findings also revealed the formation of lasting friendships within the game, with a significant number of players extending these connections beyond the virtual realm to other online platforms and even real-life meetings. Guild membership emerged as a pivotal factor, which may have fostered a strong sense of community and belonging among players, as elucidated by the Social Identity Theory (Tajfel & Turner, 1979). Additionally, our analysis revealed notable improvements in communication and teamwork skills among players, echoing the transformative potential of gameplay discussed in the Theory of Transformative Game Design (Bowman & Baird, 2022). Apart from game designers and researchers, this study is also relevant to everyone seeking to develop their social skills and confidence. These findings emphasised the potential impact of World of Warcraft in fostering social integration, skill development, and the cultivation of meaningful relationships that transcend the boundaries of the game environment. As MMORPGs continue to evolve as influential cultural phenomena, our study contributes valuable insights into the nuanced dynamics of online gaming communities and their broader implications for social interaction and personal growth.

Abstract   Title: Maintaining a competitive brokerage team during a changing market marked by economic crises – A management perspective   Level: Bachelor's degree in business administration   Author: Emilia Almquist and Elin Larsson   Supervisor: Svante Brunåker   Date: 2024 May  Purpose: The purpose is to examine what strategies leaders take to maintain a competitive brokerage team during a changing market marked by economic crises.  Method: The study is based on a qualitative research method to answer the purpose and questions. Six semi-structured interviews have been conducted with a deductive research approach and with inductive elements. The respondents are active office managers from different real estate offices and the interviews were conducted both physically and digitally.   Conclusions: The conclusions we reached through in this study are that sales training, cost reductions and follow-ups are some of the strategies that the leaders used to get through a tough market that consisted of various challenges. Transformational leadership style was marked in all respondents' interview answers, which strengthened the theoretical frame of reference suggesting that transformational leadership style is best suited in crisis situations.   Contribution of the thesis: The practical contribution we make with this study is to give leaders tools in form of strategies they can apply in future challenging market situations or crises. The theoretical contribution we make with this study is that the old methods are no longer sustainable in relation to the changing environment. This describes how the market is constantly changing and that leaders must adapt new strategies to meet the new market conditions that are coming.   Suggestions for further research: Further research of our work could be to examine whether employees are satisfied with their leaders' choice of strategies during a changing market marked by economic crises. Further research could also be to investigate the impact of a new crisis on leaders' strategies to see whether they have changed or been affected by it.   Keywords: Leadership, crisis management, transformative leadership.

This study aims to identify common barriers to the missional growth of local congregations. In addition, the research will provide a resource for evaluating effectiveness across diverse areas of ministry and propose implications for presiding elders in the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church to support thriving local churches. There is not a single sector of society that has not been impacted by the global pandemic, including the local church. The disruption of COVID-19 has inspired many to reevaluate purposes and practices. Whereas evaluation of congregations may not have been approached in a systematized manner before, there is a need to do so now more than ever. The researcher employs Allan Roxburgh’s 5-stage Missional Change Model in conversation with Walter Fluker’s model of Ethical Leadership.

This exploratory case study focused on youth and resistance that was aided by the use of technology. The combination of resistance and technology expanded a multidimensional framework and leads to new insight into transformative resistance. This study examined the framework of transformative resistance based on Solórzano and Delgado Bernal’s (2001) findings. Specific interest centered on learning how and why youth used MySpace to organize student walkouts in protest of House Resolution 4437 in late March 2006, ultimately amassing 40,000 students in Los Angeles. Another purpose was to create a framework for ways in which educators can meaningfully embrace the combination of pedagogy, technology, and revolution. The case study method, which involved collecting data by document review, MySpace Group pages, and interviews, produced a comprehensive picture of the H.R. 4437 Walkouts. Thematic coding and social network analysis were used to examine the collected data. The study findings showed that a combination of multimodal (face-to-face, text messaging, and MySpace) and multidirectional (one-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-one, many-to-many) communications contributed to the success of the H.R. 4437 Walkouts. The sub-themes of speed and strategic use of private and public communication channels also played roles. The combination of these four elements created a decentralized, nonhierarchical network that provided significant strengths, but also indicated some weaknesses in the communication process. An educational framework is proposed that combines pedagogy, technology and revolution. Multidimensional revolutionary pedagogy has been created as a guide for teachers to facilitate student efforts to engage in transformative resistance related to social justice causes.

This mixed-methods study analyzed the effectiveness of the practices and attitudes of selected African American teachers who use culturally relevant and responsive Afrocentric pedagogies as the instructional foundation for improved academic outcomes with their African American students. The theory of Afrocentricity was used as the philosophical framework to study their pedagogy. Afrocentricity is a mode of thought and practice in which in African people are placed at the center of their own history and culture; engages them as subjects rather than objects; and approaches them with respect for their interests, values, and perspectives (Asante 1980, 2003). Concepts employed from this theoretical framework provided a lens for the triangulation of qualitative and quantitative data collected and analyzed. The setting for this study was a private Afrocentric prekindergarten through 8th-grade school. The participants in this study were 3 African American teachers. Data collected and analyzed supported using culturally relevant and responsive pedagogy to produce improved academic outcomes for students of color (Boykin, 1984, 1994; Hale-Benson, 1986; King, 1991; Ladson-Billings, 1994; Shujaa, 1995; Villegas, 1991). Findings suggested that in selected academic settings improved academic performance occurred for African American students when teachers used culture relevant and responsive pedagogy. The following themes were embedded in the pedagogy: self-determination, academic empowerment, cultural empowerment, and family/community empowerment. The findings implied a need for teachers and teacher-training institutions to re-examine, recommit, and reinstitute culturally relevant and responsive pedagogy that respects and addresses the culture, education, and social improvement for positive academic outcomes for all children.

The objective of this research study is the examination of the ideas about youth work found within the leadership team for the youth work of the Evangelical St. Reinoldi Chapel, Rupelrath. It investigates the way in which the team leaders' subjective understanding of youth work is affected by theological tensions, following David Bosch's approach “Mission in Creative Tension”. Following the Empirical-Theological Praxis Cycle, a qualitative analysis is carried out within the context of the youth leadership team of the Evangelical youth work. Data collection is undertaken in the form of a group workshop, data analysis in accordance with Grounded Theory. The results are utilised in order to develop a Dialogical Model for Transformative Youth Work as well as guiding principles for youth work with a missiological foundation. This study also aims to contribute to the development of a missiological rationale for youth work. / Philosophy & Systematic Theology

This study applied the stages of transformative learning to faculty perceptions and application of best practices to online learning. Research questions included: Can transformative learning theory constructs be used to identify potential barriers in faculty development and delivery of online instruction?; How does the stage of transformative learning of online faculty relate to their perceptions about online learning and their application of best practices?; Is there a correlation between stage of transformative learning and the amount of experience with online instruction a faculty member has? Principal component analysis and cluster analysis support a four-component solution. The four constructs equate to Mezirow's four stages of learning: transforming frames of reference through critical reflection of assumptions, validating contested beliefs through discourse, taking action on one's reflective insight, and critically assessing it. Multiple regression analyses were run to predict faculty perceptions on the identified components. Three of these were statistically significant based on years of experience teaching online, the number of professional development workshops taken on online teaching, or both. While the instrument appears to be a valid measurement of transformation of frame of reference, examination of previously contested beliefs, and critical assessment of action, further efforts will be needed before this is a fully validated instrument.