This research uses the SPA System (Sustainability Performance Assessment, Paun 2015) to assess sustainability performance for three natural resource-based case study companies in Asia, Europe, and the United States. The SPA System is built on the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework, and consists of 91 performance measures in three categories: economic, environmental, and social. The economic dimension of sustainability concerns impacts on the economic conditions of stakeholders, and on local, national, and global levels. The environment dimension concerns impact on living and non-living natural systems, related to inputs (e.g. energy, materials, water), outputs (e.g. emissions, effluents, waste), biodiversity, transport, and environmental compliance and expenditures. The social dimension concerns the impacts on social systems within which the firm operates and includes labor practices, human rights, product responsibility, and society. The sample consisted of three case study companies from three countries: China Steel (Taiwan), Fairmount (U.S.), and Givaudan (Switzerland). Data was extracted from their annual sustainability reports. China Steel reported the highest percent of GRI indicators (97%) and had the highest mean sustainability performance (3.1). It reported more than double the indicators as compared to the other two case study companies, indicating substantially greater transparency. Fairmount, a U.S. producer of sand-based products for the energy and building construction industries, reported on the fewest percent of indicators (20%) and had the lowest sustainability performance mean (0.7). Givaudan, a Swiss company that produces flavors and fragrances, reported on 37% of the GRI indicators and had the middle mean sustainability performance. Using SPA means stakeholders can assess and compare sustainability performance among companies, thus enabling better, more informed decision making (e.g., which companies to buy from, work at, invest in, lend to).

A known carcinogen, arsenic is elevated in many areas through natural and human causes. Its persistence in the environment and toxicity at low levels impacts both human health and ecosystem integrity. In humans, arsenic has been linked to cancers of the skin, lung, and bladder. Phytoremediation is a cost-effective, eco-friendly technology that uses the natural ability of plants to remediate pollutants, such as arsenic, from contaminated soils. We are investigating whether endophytes, mutualistic microbes colonizing the internal tissues of plants, can improve this process. Endophytes have been shown to increase host-plant tolerance to a wide range of environmental stressors, and we hypothesize that arsenic-tolerant endophytes may improve the tolerance of their host plants to arsenic. Willow (Salix ssp.) are fast growing, high biomass plants, with deep roots, and have demonstrated tolerance to arsenic. In this research, eight willow varieties were screened for arsenic uptake from hydroponic solution in order to establish the best candidates for the phytoremediation of arsenic-contaminated soils. The plants were exposed to arsenic for ten days, then the dried tissues were separated (root/shoot), digested in concentrated nitric acid, and assessed for total arsenic via ICP-OES. Four species, S. scouleriana, S. discolor, S. vimanalis x S. miyabeana, and S. sachalinensis x S. miyabena accumulated the highest level of arsenic in their shoots. Because the purpose of phytoremediation is to remove pollutants from the site, ideal candidates will translocate higher proportions of arsenic into their above ground tissues. These four species will be used in further phytoremediation trials. 

My research focuses on the understanding of agro-ecological practices in small, marginalized indigenous communities. Sustainable and cultural agricultural practices are increasingly oppressed by global corporate policies which often erase traditional indigenous expertise. My goal is to explore why the legacy and practices of traditional knowledge in small indigenous farming enterprises may be threatened. Jocotepec is a region that has been drastically affected by the North American Free Trade Alliance and as a result community members have lost most of their cultural tradition to the modernization of agricultural methodologies that were implemented roughly 20 years ago. Small scale campesinos are grateful that they can rent their parcels and make a profit, yet regret the establishment of big industrial American raspberry farms. My research focuses on traditional agricultural practices of the Jocotepec Region of Mexico, analyzing the impact of three large American raspberry farms. My methodological approach includes collecting data gleaned from semi-structured interviews with twelve indigenous small scale farmers and community Elders who shared critical perspectives of outside pressure generated by the three large American raspberry farms in Jocotepec, Mexico.

Chelating agents are widely used in plants and human industries to capture metal ions and control free metal ion concentrations. Constituent ions in soils (e.g. Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺) influence the exchange of a metal ion between two chelating agents. Predicting changes in reaction pathways and the magnitude of kinetic effects is fundamental to understanding dynamic metal speciation where strong chelating ligands control metal ion speciation. This research focuses on the influence of calcium ions on the exchange rate of Ni between nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) and 1,2-cyclohexylenedinitrilotetraacetic acid (CDTA). Capillary electrophoresis was used to monitor the changes in free chelating agent and nickel-chelating agent complex concentration with time at different pHs and reactant concentrations. Reaction rates and order were compared to those in the absence of calcium ion. The presence of calcium ions reduces overall exchange rates and alters reaction order under the conditions studied. Kinetic modeling is used to support a proposed mechanism for the influence of calcium on this exchange reaction. Knowledge about dynamic metal speciation is fundamental to understanding the ideal soil compositions for plants’ uptake of essential metals and developing remediation methods for hazardous waste sites.