Advancing Tribal Court Criminal Jurisdiction In Alaska

Extensive case law already exists in Alaska on the jurisdiction of tribal courts over domestic relations cases, with one of the seminal cases—John v. Baker—establishing that Alaska tribes have jurisdiction even in the absence of Indian country. A common assumption, though, is that Alaska tribes do not have jurisdiction over criminal offenses. This Article argues that both under the logic of John v. Baker and the development of Indian law in the Lower 48, Alaska tribes already possess inherent jurisdiction over criminal offenses within their Native villages. With the gamut of social challenges facing Alaska Natives in rural Alaska, tribes need to be empowered to exercise this jurisdiction

A Conceptual UX-aware Model of Requirements

User eXperience (UX) is becoming increasingly important for success of software products. Yet, many companies still face various challenges in their work with UX. Part of these challenges relate to inadequate knowledge and awareness of UX and that current UX models are commonly not practical nor well integrated into existing Software Engineering (SE) models and concepts. Therefore, we present a conceptual UX-aware model of requirements for software development practitioners. This layered model shows the interrelation between UX and functional and quality requirements. The model is developed based on current models of UX and software quality characteristics. Through the model we highlight the main differences between various requirement types in particular essentially subjective and accidentally subjective quality requirements. We also present the result of an initial validation of the model through interviews with 12 practitioners and researchers. Our results show that the model can raise practitioners' knowledge and awareness of UX in particular in relation to requirement and testing activities. It can also facilitate UX-related communication among stakeholders with different backgrounds.Comment: 6th International Working Conference on Human-Centred Software Engineerin

Shaping Identity - A Study of the Construction of National Identity in Two Royal Speeches

This study examines the construction of national identity in two speeches, held respectively by King Abdullah II of Jordan and King Mohammed VI of Morocco, during the height of the Arab Spring in 2011. These speeches were a response to public uprisings and contained numerous reforms, which may have been instrumental for the continued rule of the Jordanian and Moroccan regimes. Using theories on national identity rooted in linguistics and sociology, this thesis investigates if and how national identity was emphasised and linguistically constructed in these two speeches. Given the political situation in the countries and the entire Middle East at the time, the kings should have been eager to unite their people around a common goal, an exercise in which a strong national identity might play a crucial part. This study is of interest due to the numerous similarities these speeches and speechmakers share, including the countries they rule, the outcome of their speeches and personal similarities between the kings themselves. Through the analysis of the speeches, it became evident that both kings emphasised and linguistically constructed a national identity for their respective countries. However, this was done employing different means and arguably to various extents

Techno-economic analysis of energy efficiency measures in a pulp mill converted to an ethanol production plant

A conceptual ethanol production plant, based on conversion of a kraft pulp mill, has been studied. The process uses softwood as raw material, alkaline pre-treatment combined with delignification, and biochemical conversion of sugars to ethanol (i.e. hydrolysis and fermentation). The plant has been analysed by pinch methods in order to find steam-saving possibilities. It is shown in the study that a large amount of steam surplus can be found if energy efficiency measures are implemented. In order to study the possible effect on the profitability of the plant when introducing steam-saving measures, the process has been analysed from a techno-economic point of view. It is shown that implementing energy efficiency measures could have a substantial effect on profitability if the by-product (in this case lignin biofuel or power) is high-valued. It is also shown that lignin as by-product might be more profitable than power, mainly because the demand for CO2 in lignin extraction might be supplied by CO2 produced in fermentation of sugars to ethanol. If investments are made to convert a pulp mill to ethanol production, energy efficiency measures should be included in the discussion since they might play an important role in minimising ethanol production cost

The influence of water proximity on land cover, tree species and tree funtionalities in a small-holder agroforestry system : a minor field study in Trans Nzoia County, NW Kenya

A large and rapidly growing population in Kenya together with increasing demands put heavy pressure on the country’s resources. Primary to produce enough food but also to meet other needs such as access to timber and firewood. A large part of the population relies on yields from their own farming for their survival. The farms are generally small and the needs many which makes it important to get out as much as possible from a limited space. A common alternative is to plant trees and implement agroforestry. Agroforestry trees are often multi-functional, but they have different main usages and the high competition of land force the farmers to select how they use their land and their agroforestry systems carefully. It is important to remember that even though tree planting can contribute to food security; it is not always a direct source of food and trees also consumes resources such as nutrients and water. The aim of this study was to investigate how water proximity influences land cover, the distribution of tree species, and the main functions of the trees (Fiber, Firewood, Fodder or Fruit) in an agro-ecosystem in Hututu settlement, Trans Nzoia County, Kenya. Further, land cover maps over five settlements in Trans Nzoia were ground truthed. User’s accuracy, producer’s accuracy, overall accuracy, and Kappa value were calculated and evaluated for all maps. Through these results together with interviews and field observations was the study area in Hututu settlement selected and a detailed land cover map created. The results show that water proximity has an influence on land cover to some degree, but since small-scale farmers mainly tries to meet their own needs can maize and beans, the staple food in Kenya, be seen everywhere. The same result can be seen for tree species, and especially when Eucalyptus is considered which the most common tree species in the area is. Tree functionality is indirectly influenced by water proximity and it can be concluded that trees that requires less management often grow close to the water courses. Further, the land cover classes Woodland and Shrubland occur more frequently in these areas. After field observations, the proximity to buildings was also investigated as an alternative factor that influences land cover and how trees are distributed. By that investigation it could be seen that woody land cover classes have a positive relationship to closeness to buildings and that fruit trees generally are planted close to the houses

Is there a Market Demand for Green Due Diligence?

During 2011, ÅF launched a service called Green Business Screening (GBS) that provides a situation analysis of the overall environmental performance of a company. The model measures a company’s external and internal environmental integration and evaluates sustainability work through ten categories within a company, where the focus changes from internal categories to external categories. GBS is a generic economic-environmental evaluation service that analyzes a company’s current environmental performance and ability to handle future environmental challenges. During the marketing and sales of GBS, a new potential market has been discovered that ÅF wants to examine further; the possibility to perform screenings in acquisition processes. Purpose The purpose of this Master’s thesis is to investigate whether there is a market demand for a Green Due Diligence. And more specifically, if GBS can be adapted from serving as a generic environmental-economic evaluation service to also be used as an analytical tool in acquisition processes. Method The project was carried out in four steps, some of them were overlapping and performed simultaneously: Compilation of up to date research reviewing the relationship between sustainability strategies and financial value. Mapping of the Swedish acquisition market and transaction services. Evaluation of the market potential for a Green Due Diligence. Assessment of the GBS model and ÅF’s internal resources and capabilities. Conclusions There is no market demand for a Green Due Diligence. Hence GBS in its current form has no potential as a transaction service on the Swedish acquisition market. However, GBS can be used in other contexts; e.g. in buyout companies’ business improvement work or when companies are conducting CSR reporting