Senior Seminars

As of 2017-18 the Environmental Studies Program will no longer have Senior Seminars.  Instead, EV Seniors will present orally at our annual EV Day if they choose.  Presenting orally at EV Day is one of the requirements for our seniors to gain Distinction at graduation.

2016-2017

Senior Seminars will be held in Block 5-7.  Each Block the oral presentations will be held in the Tutt Science Building room 122 beginning at 3:00PM.  Following is a list of presenters for each session, with the title of their presentation (as it becomes available).

Block 5:  Thursday, 2/2/17

Lani Chang:  "Spatial analysis of tree growth and distribution at an abrupt treeline on Pikes Peak"
Elizabeth Forster:  "Conservation and Identity:  How Anglo-American and Native American Relationships with the Environment Dictate Ownership and Management of Public Lands"

Block 6:  Thursday, 3/2/17

Lea Linse:  "Roots of Impasse:  The Impact of Neoliberalism on Recovery Planning under the Endangered Species Act"
Emily Lucas:  "The Environmental and Spiritual Significance of Oak Flat, an Apache Sacred Site"

Block 7:  Thursday, 4/6/17

Caleb Cofsky:  "Treeline Micrometeorology and how it is Affected by Airflow on Pike's Peak"
Patrick Jurney:  "Examining the Impact of the Northward Migration of Yellow Cedar in Southeast Alaska on the Existing Biogeochemistry and Net Carbon Equilibrium"
Siqi Wei:  "Does culture or development construct the way people think about and act on the environment"
Charlotte Cadow:  "The Development of Inquiry Skills in Response to a 10 Week Environmental Education Program"

2015-2016

Senior Seminars will be held in Blocks 6-7.  Each Block the oral presentations will be held in the Tutt Science Building room 122 beginning at 3:30PM.  Following is a list of presenters for each session, with the title of their presentation (as it becomes available).

Block 6:  Thursday, 2/25/16

Barrett Donovan:  "Aspen (Populous tremuloides) Response to Thinning and Elk Exclosures"
Laurel Sebastian:  "Community Interactions between Two Monkeyflowers and their Pollinators in Mt. Rainier National Park"
Rachel Sussman:  "Size-Resolved Aerosol Composition near Rocky Mountain National Park"
Kyra Wolf:  "  Effects of wildfire on soil carbon bioavailability in forested ecosystems of the Colorado Rockies"

Block 7:  Thursday, 3/31/16

Ben Criswell:  "Salmon in the Status Quo"
Marissa Maurelli:  "Neonicotinoids and their Effects on Pollinators"
Eric Neumeyer:  "Unlocking an Abrupt Tree Line:  A Synthesis of Micrometeorology and Vegetative Response"
Gabriella Palko:  "Why animal agriculture must be controlled, and how to do it"
Meredith Parish:  "A Micrometeorological Study of an Abrupt Treeline on Pike's Peak"

2014-2015

Senior Seminars will be held Blocks 3-7.  Each Block the oral presentations will be held in the Tutt Science Building room 122 beginning at 3:30PM.  Following is a list of presenters for each session, with the title of their presentation (as it becomes available).

Block 3:  Thursday, 10/30/14

Rayna Ben-Zeev:  "The Vulnerability of California Amphibian Species to Climate Change"
Rachel Severson:  "Pyruvic acid photolysis:  Characterization of the secondary organic aerosol formed"
Audrey Wheeler:  "Causes and consequences of alpine shrub expansion on Pikes Peak, Colorado"

Block 4:  Thursday, 12/11/14

Erika Berglund:  "Assessment of Phytoremediation in the Kerber Creek Watershed"
Rebecca Marks:  "Vertical Growth of Trees at the Treeline of Pike's Peak"
Dylan Sondermann:  "A micrometeorlogical study of tree line dynamics"

Block 5:  Thursday, 1/22/15

Rebecca Lavietes:  "Federal regulation of hydraulic fracturing:  Fusing the fissure between energy and the environment"
Rebekah Barnett:  "Electrified Reefs:  Enhancing Growth in a Temperate Solitary Coral Species"
Emma Marshall:  ""Microclimatology and tree-growth at the alpine treeline on Pikes Peak"
Kevin Moss:  "Global Climate Change and National Park Service Management"

Block 6:  Thursday, 2/19/15

Brooke Larsen:  "Collaborative Conservation in the Contested Landscapes of Southern Utah"
Alec Sowers:  "Green Roofs:  Modeling the Economic Benefits for Architects and Developers"
Mallory Morgan:  "Rethinking "Wild" and Reforming Policy:  Facilitating Twenty-First Century Conservation Through the BLM's Wild Horse Program"
Betsie Hopper:  "Terrestrial Hydrologic Response to Climate Change"

Block 7:  Thursday, 4/2/15

Ross Sherman:  "Effects of Wildfire on Carbon and Nitrogen Stocks in Ponderosa Pine Ecosystems"
Fiona Haslett:  "How Can Formal Administrative Structures Enhance Sustainability in Liberal Arts Colleges?:  A Case Study of Colorado College"
Sam Bray:  "Nitrogen Dynamics in a Tidal Freshwater Zone"

2013-2014

Senior Seminars will be held Blocks 3-7.  Each Block the oral presentations will be held in the Tutt Science Building room 122 beginning at 3:00PM.  Following is a list of presenters for each session, with the title of their presentation (as it becomes available).

Block 3:  Thursday, 11/7/13

Christiana Shams:  "Ecological Monitoring Informs Restoration and Regeneration Efforts in Mixed Conifer Forests of Colorado"
Emily Fish:  "Life Cycle Assessment as an Effective Tool for Environmental Education"

Block 4:  Thursday, 12/5/13
Zachary Bellows:  "Water Quality in Bali:  A Multiperspectival Approach"
Caitlin Armington:  "A Qualitative Analysis of the LEED Potential of the Catamount Dorm"
Emily Guffin:  "Characterization of Atmospheric Aerosols in a Tropical Premontane Cloud Forest"

Block 5:  Thursday, 1/30/14
Charlie Landsman:  "Comparative Urban-Wildland Fire Policy:  Australia and the U.S."
Sam Williams:  "Conserving Biodiversity:  A Qualitative Analysis of Federal Environmental Policies in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem"

Block 6:  Thursday, 2/17/14
Zane Randell:  "Protected Areas, Ecosystems, and Poverty:  An Analysis of the Effects of Ecosystem Services and Ecotourism on Quality of Life in Nicaragua"
Matt Zia:  "Micrometeorological Feedbacks at Alpine Tree Line"
Lauren Hebert:  "Spatial Distribution of Alpine Avens (Acomastylis rossii) Patches in the Pikes Peak Tundra"
Sarah-Emma Graham:  "Atomkraft, Nein Danke:  using social movements and the advocacy coalition framework to explain Germany's nuclear power policy after Fukushima"

Block 7:  Thursday, 4/3/14
Johanna Jensen:  "Pikes Peak's Freckles:  Regular Pattern Formation of High Alpine Tundra Vegetation on Pike Peak, CO"
Alena Ede:  "Tread Lightly:  an Assessment of Researcher Trampling Impact on Understory Vegetation"
Eugene Tan:  "Modelling the Potential Impacts of Climate Change:  Making Integrated Assessment Models (IAMs) Assess Risk More Scientifically"
Mollie Hayden:  "Lessons from the Waldo Canyon Fire"

2012-2013

Senior Seminars will be held Blocks 4 - 7.  Each Block the oral presentations will be held in the Tutt Science Building room 122 from 3:00-5:00PM.  Following is a list of presenters for each session, with the title of their presentation (as it becomes available).

Block 4:  Thursday, 12/6/12

Melanie Yemma:  "Establishing Community Gardens for Long-Term Success in Colorado Springs"
Gracie Stallings:  "Biopharming:  A Look into the Policy and Science" 

Block 5:  Thursday, 1/31/13
Gabe Patterson: "Advanced liquid transportation fuel:  improvements in enzymatic degradation of cellulosic biomass"
Margo Davis:  "Long-term patterns of the diatom Thalassiosira nordenskioeldii in Narragansett Bay"
Nicolas Sander:  "A technological, economic and policy comparison of Electric Vehicles and Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles"

Block 6:  Thursday, 2/28/13
Nicki Naylor:  "The Climatic Effects of Tree Growth at Colorado's Tree Line"
Nicole Gillett:  "Refocusing on the Local Aspects of Marine Resource Management:  A Case Study of Two Marine Management Schemes and Their Impacts on Local Small-Scale Fisheries in Costa Rica"

Block 7:  Thursday, 4/4/13
Chris Dickson:  "Microclimatological Feedbacks at Treeline:  Is Treeline Structure Modifying the Local Microclimate?"
Audrey Burns:  "Navigating the Path to Water for Electricity Generation in the Colorado River Basin"
Andrew Hall:  "Reconciling Institutional Levels of Water Governance and Management for the Monterey Peninsula Water Supply"

 

2011-2012

Senior Seminars will be held Blocks 2, and 4-7, with the final presentations on EV Day in Block 8. Each Block the oral presentations will be held on the second Wednesday or Thursday from 3:00-5:00PM. Following is a list of presenters for each session, with the title of their presentation (as it becomes available).

Block 2: Ian Shiach, "Evaluating the Response of the Terrestrial Biosphere to Significant Drought"

Block 4:
Daniel Kidney: "Coccinellid Predation on Aphis Helianthi: Diffusive Instability and Pattern Formation in Predator-Prey Systems"
Christopher Lutz: "The Cruising Industry in the Caribbean"
Karen Ritland: "The Human Wildlife Interface in the Lake Manyara National Park Region of Tanzania"
Rebecca O'Brien: "The Ants Go Marching: A study of ant movement within and between yucca plants"

Block 5: 
Sally Hardin:  "An Analysis of Alternatives for Water Distribution Between Municipal and Agricultural Users on the Colorado River"
Kelsey Elwood:  "Spatial patterns and distribution of an advancing treeline on Pikes Peak, CO"
Hilary Lempit:  "A Comparison of Revegetation Methods for Montane Forest Burn Recovery, Pike National Forest, Colorado" 

Block 6:
Allison Stewart:  "A Comprehensive Study of the History and Future Sustainability of Colorado Land Trusts and Conservation Easements"
McKenzie Woolley:  "The effects of Mining on Stream ecology in the Peruvian Andes"
Daniel Boyes:  "Assessing the Impact of Mining on Water Quality in the Central Peruvian Andes" 
Sebastian Tsocanos:  "Tallgrass Prairie of Eastern Colorado:  Change Since 1950" 

Block 7: 
Tiffany Calabaza:  "Exercising Self-Determination by Engaging in Renewable Energy Technologies:  Introducing Solar Water Pumping Systems to Kewa Pueblo"
Tim Weiss:  "Methods for Distributing Appropriate Sustainable Energy Technology in Developing Nations:  A Comparative Study"
Warren King:  "The Law of the Colorado River Basin:  A Flexible Foundation or a Rigid Relic"
Josh Anderson:   "Micrometeorological Feedbacks at Treeline:  Are the trees at the leading edge responsible for increased local temperatures?"

Block 8: (EV Day 5/4/12): 
Meredith Stewart:  "Examining the response of soil nutrients to mastication treatments in Colorado's Front Range ponderosa pine forests"
Shannon Morgan:  "The German Experience in Promoting Photovoltaic Markets:  A Cautionary Tale to the U.S." 
Jonathan Harmon:  "The Environmental Perspective:  Metaphor and Empathy in Leopold's Land Ethic"
Sam Stewart:  "Using Abiotic Diversity Indices to Assess Stream Geomorphology and Channel Habitat Along a Stream Restoration Gradient" 

2010-2011

Senior Seminars will be held Blocks 4-7, with the final presentations on EV Day in Block 8. Each Block the oral presentations will be held on the second Thursday from 3:00-5:00PM. Following is a list of the presenters for each session, with the title of their presentation (as it becomes available).

Block 4: Joel Minor, "Internalizing Environmental Costs through Severance Taxes: Using Sovereignty to Protect Tribal Natural Resources"

Block 5:
Paul Hawkins, "Epiphyte Control on Cacao (Theobroma cacao trees"
Jack Siddoway, "Variance of Organic Nitrogen in Arctic Tundra Soils: How the Future Landscape of the Arctic can be Predicted by Amino Acid Profiles"
Katherine Heal, "A Novel Method for Preconcentrating Marine Dissolved Organic Phosphorus: Laboratory Development and Application in the South Pacific"

Block 6:
Kyle Hemes, "Vegetation Phenology as a Constraint on Global Surface-Atmosphere Exchange: An evaluation of a prognostic phenology model"
Peter Kernan, "Harvesting Fallen Fruit: A Study on Improving the Efficiency and Impact of Building Energy Audits and Retrofits"
Maureen Botoman, "Social values and environmental actions: the role of environmental attitudes and socio-demographic variables on pro-environmental behaviors and political involvement"
Steven Getz, "Wind Energy Economics: Maximizing Potential in the United States"

Block 7:
Alexis Johnson, "Characteristics of microclimate impacting growth of Engelmann Spruce at treeline on Pikes Peak, Colorado"
Carol Earnest, "Treeline Dynamics on Pikes Peak, CO: Is the treeline moving and what is controlling the movement rate?"
Will Stauffer-Norris, "Fire, Water and Wilderness: Effects of wildfire severity on large woody debris in the Frank Church Wilderness, Idaho"
Molly Morman, "The Potential of Solar: Modeling the Exports of Oil and Solar Energy in the Middle East"

Block 8 (EV Day - April 30)
Jillian Gold, "In-stream processing of nitrogen in a severely polluted urban stream"
Keith Fritschie, "Assessing Multivariate Pathways with Structural Equation Modeling: The Fate of Streams in Disappearing Eastern Hemlock Forests"
Kendall DeLyser, "Seeing the Trees for the Forest: The Role of National Governments in Achieving Sustainable Forest Management"

2009-2010

Senior Seminars for this year will be accomplished by an EV Day, currently scheduled for the first Saturday of Block 8, April 24, from 9:00AM to approximately noon. EV Day will provide students with a new forum for sharing thesis work, capstone research projects and independent studies through posters and/or oral presentations with their fellow students and interested faculty and staff. Exceptions to this procedure will include any seniors who will only be on campus during the first semester, who will give their senior seminar prior to Block 5. These are listed below:

Kendra Garner will be presenting on December 10, 2009 on "Population Dynamics of the Flammulated Owl"

Listed below are those seniors presenting their thesis at EV Day:

John Gioia: "Effects of local pine squirrel assemblage (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) on reproductive success of a population of breeding flammulated owls (Otus flammeolus) in a montane forest of central Colorado"

Hallie Harness: "Environmental Education through Film"

Summer Roberts: "Potention Feedback Mechanisms Operating Among Engelmann Spruce at Alpine Treeline on Pikes Peak, CO"

Alex Tom: "Coccinellid Spatial Foraging Behavior"

Katherine Riley: "Evaluation of the Environmental, Economic and Social Efficiency of Carbon Offset Projects"

Jessica Kortmeyer: "Nest site selection by secondary cavity-nesting species"

Molly Feiden: "The dynamics of treeline on Pikes Peak in possible response to recent climate change"

Matt Bernard: "Ethical Economics and Biogeochemical Perspectives on Forestry Management Practices Along the Front Range of Colorado"

2008-2009

Senior Seminars for this year will be accomplished by an EV Day, currently scheduled for the first Saturday of Block 8, April 25, from 9:00AM to approximately noon. EV Day will provide students with a new forum for sharing thesis work, capstone research projects and independent studies through posters and/or oral presentations with their fellow students and interested faculty and staff. Exceptions to this procedure will include any seniors who will only be on campus during the first semester, who will give their senior seminar prior to Block 5. These are listed below:

Neva Jacobs will be presenting 11/13/08 on "Human health risks and backyard gardening: Heavy metal contamination in urban soils and edible plants"

Julianne Kellogg will be presenting 12/11/08 on "Agricultural Development in the Tea Industry of Darjeeling in Post-Green Revolution India: The Sanjukta Vikas Society"

Senior Seminars for 2007-2008
The Enviromental Program hosts a seminar series for our seniors to present their senior research. This is a listing of the Senior Seminars which will be presented by the Class of 2008, Environmental Science. Each session will be held the first Thursday of the Block, at 3:00PM in Tutt Science Building Room 122. Titles will be added as students make them available.

BLOCK 4
Nicole Scommegna: "Biodiversity Loss in the Daintree Rainforest in Australia"
Eric Szabelski: "Water, Violence and the Apocalypse"
Melissa Pollack: "Growing Smart: Causes, Consequences and Solutions to America's Increasing Problem of Urban Sprawl"
Brittany Vogel: "Managing Uranium Mining in the US: The Application of Environmental Management Systems"

BLOCK 5
Simon Cataldo: "Residential Energy Efficiency and Home Energy Auditing as Environmentally and Economically Beneficial Practices"
Matt Gettleman: "The role of Urban Gardens in fighting hunger and building community"
Andrew Millar: "Coal...Fuel of the future?"
Liza McElroy: "The EPA's failure to regulate carbon dioxide and the resulting acceleration of global climate change"

BLOCK 6
Jess Walton: "The Effect of Roads on Vegetation and Wildlife Grazing in Tarangire National Park, Tanzania"
Liza Mitchell: "Reforestation and Conservation In Northern Thailand: A Comparison of Governmental and Local Initiatives"
Aubrey Urban: "Intrusion of Seawater into Fresh Water Aquifers: Current Approaches and Proposed Improvements in Los Angeles County"...

BLOCK 7
Chris Simons: "Vine to Wine: A Thermodynamic Analysis of Californian Pinot Noir Wine Production"
Emily Harrington: "Application of Environmental Management Strategies to the Pulp Industry"
Liz Kolbe: "Ethanol in Iowa: Causes and Effects, and How to Move Forward"
Sarah Mitnick: "A song is worth a thousand pictures: Reconnecting the mind with nature"

BLOCK 8

Gillian Bobier: "The Trials and Tribulations of Teaching Atmospheric Science to Young Children"
Megan Vasquez: "The Dirt on Shade Grown Coffee: The Effects of Biodiversity and Shade on Soil Quality of Coffee Farms in Costa Rica"
Liza Mitchell: "Reforestation and Conservation in Northern Thailand: A Comparison of Governmental and Local Initiatives"