Creative Placemaking: Building Partnerships to Create Change

Arts, artists, and creative strategies can be critical vehicles for planning to achieve social, economic, and community goals. Creative placemaking is one type of arts-led planning that incorporates both stakeholder participation and community goals. Yet, questions exist around who participates in the creative placemaking process and to what end. Our study discusses a case where a state-sponsored workshop brings people from diverse backgrounds together to facilitate community development and engagement through creative placemaking. In particular, the event discussed in this study highlights how a one-shot intervention can reshape perceptions of creative placemaking held by planners, non-planners, artists, and non-artists. Our study also shows that while pre-workshop participants tended to identify resource-based challenges, post-workshop participants focused more on initiating collaborations and being responsive to community needs. The different attitudes before and after the state-sponsored workshop demonstrate the importance of facilitating stakeholder understanding and engagement for successful creative placemaking

The Scale of Mission-Embeddedness as a Nonprofit Revenue Classification Tool: Different Earned Revenue Types, Different Performance Effects

Nonprofits rely on earned revenue to remain sustainable. Prior studies have generally aggregated all earned revenue and evaluated its influence on financial sustainability. Our study takes a different approach, assessing the effects of three different types of earned revenue on an immediate program outcome. We use Cultural Data Project data from 2,000 arts and culture nonprofits from 2004-2012. We find that embedded and integrated earned revenue are linked to better program outcomes while external earned revenue is related to poorer program outcomes. Results depend on type (performing vs. visual arts) and funding structure (donative vs. commercial)

A Shock to the Status Quo: Characteristics of Nonprofits That Make Strategic Decisions During a Crisis

Over the past three years, the nonprofit sector has undergone a profound change. This study examines the changes nonprofits made in response to COVID-19 and looks at the characteristics of the most adaptive nonprofits. It finds that the nonprofit sector displayed resilience and adaptation and provides a roadmap for nonprofit success during uncertainty. Many nonprofits recovered rapidly after 2020 and have implemented long-lasting changes since. Sixty percent of nonprofits have engaged in a strategic planning process since the pandemic, and 44% have added new online programs. Government partnerships during the crisis were crucial, as they influenced nonprofits' growth or retrenchment. Volatility of government funding led to shifts in strategies. Nonprofits with changed government funding, whether increased or decreased, reported higher percentages of new programming. While not surprising, the study also shows that greater challenges bring more changes to nonprofits – even though some changes may not be positive, such as reducing workforce size or cutting programs. This study underscores the crucial role of government-nonprofit partnerships, adaptable leadership, and proactive planning for changes during a crisis. It provides a roadmap that nonprofit leaders can use to navigate ambiguity, embrace change, and forge a sustainable path toward growth and impact

The Retreat of Influence: Exploring the Decline of Nonprofit Advocacy and Public Engagement

Key findings:A significantly lower proportion of nonprofits report advocating or lobbying compared to 20 years ago.Mission plays the largest role in determining nonprofit advocacy and lobbying.Today, significantly fewer nonprofits know advocacy activities they are legally allowed to do compared to 20 years ago.Although a majority of nonprofits have a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) statement, only 36% of them engage in policy activities to create more equitable systems.Nonprofits that belong to collaborative groups advocate at higher rates than those that are not members.Only 13% of nonprofits conduct nonpartisan activities to help people vote

Liquefaction potential assessment based on sand boils observed during the 2017 M5.4 Pohang, Korea earthquake

Department of Urban and Environmental Engineering (Disaster Management Engineering)The M5.4 earthquake occurred on November 15, 2017 in Heunghae eup, Pohang city. This earthquake was recorded as the second largest instrumented earthquake in South Korea and caused numerous damages on grounds and structures. Unlike the 2016 M5.5 Gyeongju, South Korea earthquake, the strongest instrumented earthquake, the Pohang earthquake occurred in the area of Quaternary sediments with thick infilling and alluvial strata, resulting in greater damages due to ground motion amplifications and liquefaction. Among the other ground deformations such as settlements, cracks, and landslides, the hundreds of liquefaction-induced sand boils observed near the epicenter were the major issue. Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) recorded locations of those sand boils. This study collected around 2,000 Standard Penetration Test (SPT) N values from the Geotechnical Information Portal System, the National Disaster Management Research Institute, the Korea Meteorological Administration and local government offices. The peak ground acceleration (PGA) obtained from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Shake map. This study computed Liquefaction Potential Index (LPI) and Liquefaction Severity Number (LSN) using those data. It turned out that the higher LPI and LSN values correspond with the locations of sand boil occurrence. This study evaluated the computed LPI and LSN based on accuracy. LPI has 69.5% accuracy, and LSN has 67.5% accuracy. In addition, this study calculated the probability using the number of girds where sand boil occurred and no sand boil is observed. The liquefaction probabilities are approximately 0.2 and 0.4 when the LPIs are 5 and 15, respectively. The liquefaction probabilities are approximately 0.1 and 0.3 when the LSNs are 30 and 70, respectively. Furthermore, this study computed the geospatial liquefaction probability model using the locations of sand boil and the influencing factors reflecting the ground motion intensities and geological and soil characteristics (i.e., peak ground acceleration (PGA), peak ground velocity (PGV), compound topographic index (CTI) from the digital elevation model (DEM), average SPT-N value for the top 5m soil deposits, distance to river near the locations of sand boil, VS30 and depth to rock). The liquefaction probability model was derived through logistic regression. The proposed probability model has 76% accuracy.ope

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Department of Materials Science and EngineeringHydrogels consisting of aqueous 3D crosslinked polymer network are very similar to living tissue properties such as elasticity, biocompatibility, hydrophilicity and porosity, and are widely used in various biomedical applications. They are widely used as promising materials for therapeutic delivery, contact lenses, bone cements, wound dressings, and 3D tissue scaffolds for tissue engineering and so on. However, to control their properties independently to suit biomedical application purpose is often challenge. One of challenge is interdependency of hydrogel properties, since controlling the crosslinking density can also affects their other properties such as the degradation rate, hydrophilicity and mechanical properties. Also, their fabrication mechanisms are often an issue. Free radical polymerization, most commonly used to form hydrogels, is usually initiated by free radical-generating compounds, radiation or heating, which activation and residual initiators often damage cells and tissues. In addition, it is difficult to control the crosslinking kinetics at low toxicity levels. Therefore, an ???in situ??? crosslinking reaction would be highly favored for hydrogel fabrication in biomedical application. because, they react under mild conditions without using initiator and their crosslinking kinetics can be widely controlled with low toxicity. Due to many things in addition to the aforementioned challenges, it is important to control these properties at different levels to meet the specific requirements. Therefore, in this study, in order to overcome limitations while maintaining their intrinsic properties, a multifunctional polymer-based hydrogel was developed, and various properties were controlled. It is expected to exhibit superior properties to increase the potential use in the biomedical industry. In chapter 2, the protein release rates from hydrogels were controlled by varying the physical properties of the hydrogels while maintaining their crosslinking density. In general, the degree of crosslinking is adjusted to control the protein release of the hydrogel as a carrier. However, it is not preferred because the crosslinking density affects the mechanical properties of the hydrogels, in which the mechanical and diffusional properties are inversely correlated. To overcome these issues, by presenting functional groups having positive charge, negative charge, and hydrophobicity, respectively, on the poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) chains, the release of proteins having various isoelectric points was controlled through electrostatic interactions. In the chapter 3, the mechanical properties and degradation behavior of PEG diacrylate (PEGDA)-polyethyleneimine (PEI) hydrogels prepared by in situ crosslinking between PEGDA and PEI via Michael addition were explored. Generally, cross-linked hydrogels involving the use of initiators to start the process often exhibit cytotoxicity depending on reagent concentrations. Therefore, their dosage must be applied carefully to prevent cytotoxicity while maintaining the ability to initiate a crosslinking reaction. As the alternative to these issues, PEGDA and PEI were used to fabricate hydrogels through "in situ" crosslinking reactions that occur under mild conditions and do not involve the use of initiators. We also explored the drug release kinetics of PEGDA-PEI hydrogels depending on their physical properties and degradation behavior. In the chapter 4, the mechanical properties of in situ forming chitosan hydrogels via Schiff base formation were controlled by introducing tunable polymer graft architecture. Due to the mechanical properties of in situ forming hydrogels depend on the crosslinking density which also controls the gelation rate, it is a significant challenge to independently control the mechanics and gelation kinetics. We synthesized PEG with varying lengths and densities conjugated to the chitosan backbone, which not only allowed dissolution in neutral aqueous solutions but also the control of mechanical properties of hydrogel while maintaining facile gelation kinetics. In addition, the tissue adhesive properties of resulting hydrogels were evaluated by ex vivo and in vivo models, demonstrating their clinical potential. In the last chapter, polyaspartamide presenting amine groups with controllable grafting density and length was synthesized using diamines with varying length of poly(ethylene glycol) linker. Small molecules can only have a few functional groups and often-show limited solubility in various solvents, limiting their controllable range. On the other hand, polymers that have functional groups throughout their repeating units serving as sites for chemical reactions can present more reactive functional groups than small molecules, resulting considered highly effective crosslinkers to develop materials with variable mechanical properties. We demonstrated the potential application as an injectable drug delivery systems undergo facile degradation and complete dissolution in physiological conditions, regardless of mechanical properties, by adjusting the graft architecture of poly(2-hydroxyethyl aspartamide)-g-amino-poly(ethylene glycol) (PHEA-PEGAm) as polymer crosslinker.ope

Analysis and comparison of Scalextric, SCX, and Carrera Digital slot car systems: A mechatronic engineering design case study

Digital slot cars operate by transmitting both power and data over a single pair of wires much like DCC-controlled model railways and some home automation systems. In this manuscript we analyse and compare the cars, track, controllers, and electronic data transmission protocols of the three popular digital slot car systems

Comprehensive Enhancement of Mechanical, Water-Repellent and Antimicrobial Properties of Regenerated Seaweed and Plant-Based Paper with Chitosan Coating

Regenerated papers made from discarded natural sources, such as seaweeds or non-wood plants, are viewed as promising eco-friendly alternatives relative to conventional wood-based paper. However, due to its limited mechanical strength and higher water absorption than compared to traditional wood paper, it often results in premature structural disintegration. In order to overcome this limitation, this research introduces an efficient and comprehensive strategy of coating seaweed and plant papers with varying concentrations and molecular weights of chitosan. Increased concentration and molecular weight resulted in a greater amount of chitosan deposition, while the highest molecular weight also shows increased dissolution of soluble components of the paper. Since plants and seaweeds contain high anionic polysaccharide contents, the cationic chitosan shows high binding affinity towards paper. The resulting chitosan-coated papers demonstrate significant enhancements in water repellency and mechanical properties. In addition, the chitosan-coated papers also show significant bacterial inhibition effects due to the natural anti-microbial activity of chitosan

Nonprofit Trends and Impacts 2021: National Findings on Donation Trends from 2015 through 2020, Diversity and Representation, and First-Year Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Nonprofit organizations in the United States play a vital role delivering services, strengthening communities, and facilitating civic engagement. They are diverse in size and type, ranging from all-volunteer organizations with no revenue to multibilliondollar institutions managed by highly professionalized staff. They have diverse revenue sources, including individual donors, fees for service, and public and private institutions. Though research has illuminated much about these organizations in recent years, we lack a nationally representative portrait of the nonprofit sector detailing donation trends and who is served, where, and by whom. Our nationally representative study fills these gaps.We focus on operating 501(c)(3) public charities whose activities range from direct service provision to community building and advocacy. We exclude many service providers in specialized fields, including hospitals, schools, higher-education institutions, churches, and other houses of worship, and we exclude organizations that usually fund other organizations rather than providing services directly. This report complements studies on donation trends conducted from individual donor and sector-wide perspectives by focusing on the experiences of nonprofits, donations that they rely on, the contexts and contours of their programs, and the US communities they serve.