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Indigenous social and economic adaptations in northern Alaska as measures of resilience
Stephanie Martin
I explored one aspect of social-ecological change in the context of an Alaskan human-Rangifer system, with the goal of understanding household adaptive responses to perturbations when there are multiple forces of change at play. I focused on households as one element of social resilience. Resilience is in the context of transition theory, in which communities are continually in a process of change, and perturbations are key points in the transition process. This case study of Anaktuvuk Pass, Alaska, USA, contributes to the understanding of cultural continuity and household resilience in times of rapid change by using household survey data from 1978 to 2003 to understand how households adapted to changes in the cash economy that came with oil development at the same time as a crash in the caribou population and state-imposed limits on caribou harvests. The research illustrates that households are resilient in the way they capture opportunities and create a new system so that elements of the old remain while parts change.
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Beyond Infrastructure: Broadband for Development in Remote and Indigenous Regions
Heather E. Hudson
Recent telecommunications stimulus projects in the U.S. and Canada were intended to increase availability of broadband through funding infrastructure investments, largely in rural and remote regions. However, true access involves more than availability; it also includes affordability and adoption. This paper presents a framework for analyzing broadband adoption that takes into consideration geographical, economic and cultural environments in indigenous communities. It includes an overview of potential social and economic impacts of broadband in remote areas, using examples from the Alaska study and the Canadian North. It then reports on results of an evaluation of Internet use and potential adoption of broadband in remote indigenous communities of southwest Alaska. Finally, the paper provides a comparative analysis of U.S. and Canadian policies intended to achieve affordable access to broadband for rural users and sustainable business models for rural broadband providers.
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Smartphone-Based, Self-Administered Intervention System for Alcohol Use Disorders: Theory and Empirical Evidence Basis
Diane K. King, Patrick L. Dulin, Vivian M. Gonzalez, Danielle Giroux, and Samantha Bacon
Advances in mobile technology provide an opportunity to deliver in-the-moment interventions to individuals with alcohol use disorders, yet availability of effective “apps” that deliver evidence-based interventions is scarce. We developed an immediately available, portable, smartphone-based intervention system whose purpose is to provide stand-alone, self-administered assessment and intervention. In this paper, we describe how theory and empirical evidence, combined with smartphone functionality contributed to the construction of a user-friendly, engaging alcohol intervention. With translation in mind, we discuss how we selected appropriate intervention components including assessments, feedback and tools, that work together to produce the hypothesized outcomes.
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Adapting and RE-AIMing a heart disease prevention program for older women with diabetes
Diane K. King, Deborah J. Toobert, Russell E. Glasgow, Lisa A. Strycker, and Manuel Jr Barrera
Coronary heart disease is a pervasive public health problem with a heavy burden among older women. There is a need for developing effective interventions for addressing this problem and for evaluating the dissemination potential of such interventions. A multiple-behavior-change program originally designed for men with heart disease was adapted for women at high risk of heart disease in two randomized clinical trials—the Mediterranean Lifestyle Program and ¡Viva Bien!. Results from these two trials, including readiness for dissemination, are evaluated using the RE-AIM framework in terms of Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance. Program adaptations produced relative high reach as well as consistent and replicated effectiveness and maintenance, and were adopted by a high percentage of primary care offices and clinicians approached. We discuss key findings, lessons learned, future directions for related research, and use of RE-AIM for program development, adaptation, scale-up, and evaluation.
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Cultural Continuity and Communities and Well-Being
Stephanie Martin
This paper describes a household survey of Inuit in northern Alaska and how the survey data were used to better understand the relative importance of jobs, wild food harvesting, and social ties for life satisfaction. It emphasizes the importance of non-material measures for life satisfaction. It builds on other research showing the importance of harvesting wild food and the persistence of a mixed economy—one that combines cash income and wild food harvests. An empirical model estimates the relationship between people's choices to work, and/or hunt and fish, and individual satisfaction with life. The model includes economic and non-economic measures of well-being as well as community characteristics and shows that what matters most for satisfaction are family ties, social support and opportunities to do things with other people. Jobs, income, housing, and modern amenities—are less important among arctic Inuit. This research addresses the purpose for the original survey project—to give a more realistic picture of life in the Arctic by showing why people who live in remote, isolated, communities, with low incomes, and substandard housing are very satisfied with their lives. It also contributes to public policy in remote regions and efforts to understand how people are adapting in a rapidly changing environment.
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Invasive Species Management Programs in Alaska: A Survey of Statewide Expenditures, 2007 - 11
Tobias Schwoerer, Rebekka Federer, and Howard II Ferren
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The Chaninik Wind Group
Tobias Schwoerer, Dennis Meiners, and Ginny Fay
The Chaninik Wind Group project, a collaboration between Native communities in remote areas of Alaska that harnesses wind power to reduce energy costs, promotes self sufficiency and economic development
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Review of Diagnostic Methods
Alexandra Edwards
As part of the conditions of funding the statewide Alaska FAS Prevention Project, SAMHSA requested that the project be evaluated by an independent team of evaluators. This evaluation contract was awarded to the Center for Human Development (CHD) at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA), with the request that the evaluation be conducted by an interdisciplinary team of evaluators from across the UAA campus. Staff at CHD subsequently selected various professionals from the UAA community to build the Evaluation Team and to divide the work involved in the evaluation of the FAS Prevention Project. The FAS Project Principal Evaluation Team selection began in February 2001 (3rd Quarter of FY 01 of the grant). In August 2001, a comprehensive evaluation plan was submitted to the FAS Advisory Team and State Office of FAS for review and approval. Following submittal of the evaluation plan application to the University of Alaska Institutional Review Board (IRB) and receipt of funding from the state in August 2001, the detailed actions defined in the Diagnostic Evaluation Plan were initiated in October 2001 (2nd Quarter of FY 02 of the grant). The Alaska Comprehensive and Specialized Evaluation Services (ACSES) was one of the groups approached by CHD to participate as a member of the FAS Project Principal Evaluation Team. ACSES was honored to take on the evaluation of diagnosis-related activities, committing to activities to meet five large goals. One of these goals was the review of FAS diagnostic methods that have been used in Alaska and across the United States. This report provides an update on activities and findings about this goal to date.
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Drainage Pierces ANWR in Alaska Study Scenario
Sharman Haley and Arlon R. Tussing
A hypothetical scenario of petroleum industry activities adjacent to the 1002 Area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) suggests that development from leases under State of Alaska jurisdiction could drain reservoirs that extend under ANWR. Anticipation of such drainage might in turn trigger Congressional authorization for limited surface development of trans-boundary fields. This article provides an overview of 5 scenarios developed for an interdisciplinary study of community sustainability in the Arctic. Forty year scenarios are not offered as predictions, but as "science fiction" - stories combining the best available scientific information and a set of fictional but plausible assumptions to explore implication of a range of plausible outcomes. The final scenario hinges on assumptions about continuing trends in technology that reduce future development costs and surface impacts.
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