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Making Nothing Something

There is a common thread among contemporary circus art disciplines that is unique in the performance world. It is a blend of theater, dance, and acrobatic skill that can produce amazingly complex and captivating works. When comparing the choreographic processes of these performance mediums with the creative practices of solo contemporary circus artists, do new choreographic themes exclusive to circus arts become visible? Or does the essence of contemporary circus lie in the combination of standard techniques adopted from theater, dance, and acrobatics? An analysis of well-known work provides viewable examples of contemporary circus choreography, while local artist surveys provided seasoned, close-to-home examples of solo circus act creation on a professional level. In summary of my findings, I discuss the implications of choreographic methods in contemporary circus from the viewpoint of a solo artist and choreographer.

Reimagining Stormwater Infrastructure on Campus

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With a campus of over seven hundred acres that borders two environmentally sensitive waterways, managing stormwater runoff is an important task for the University of Washington. Currently, the University meets the standards of stormwater management for new development dictated by local, state, and federal agencies, but incorporates very few of the latest and most environmentally sustainable methods of stormwater management. Moreover, the proposed Campus Master Plan, which emphasizes the creation of a more environmentally conscious campus, includes very little in the way of revising and retrofitting existing structures to better manage stormwater on campus. To begin addressing this gap, I have created a retrofit plan that incorporates modern methods of stormwater management based on an existing site on campus. My plan focuses on a single demonstration site, a redesign of the courtyard between Raitt Hall and Savery Hall adjacent to the central Quad. The proposal incorporates easily implemented infrastructure such as bioswales and permeable pavement to create a space that is both functional for its users and acts as a stormwater management site on campus. I chose this site to show how similar methods could be easily transferred to other parts of campus. By creating this design plan, I also demonstrate how the University of Washington could retrofit its existing structures so that they exceed local standards and become an example for other campuses looking to enhance their own stormwater management systems.

E-Kidts

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Encouraging creativity among people is important, especially during their teenage years. Unfortunately, most educational projects lack excitement as well as practical applications. How can building an electric motorbike inspire the next generation of builders? Aimed to spark interest in science, technology, engineering, and math, STEM, I have created a consumer-direct kit where teenagers and adults alike are able to build and ride their own electric bike, capable of speeds up to 28 mph. The frame is made out of recycled High-Density Polyethylene plastic, HDPE, allowing the kit’s color to be customized while also remaining sustainable. Through the power of hands-on work, builders will have the exciting and rare opportunity to assemble their own electric bike. The next steps for this product are to continue research and development, identify a supplier and secure an intellectual patent to protect the E-KIDTS business model for further product development.

South Beacon Light Rail Accessibility

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Geographical, and topographical barriers limit pedestrian accessibility to the light rail
station in South Seattle for residents living between S Holden and S Cambridge St on Beacon
Avenue. This project explores ways of overcoming these barriers. The project includes a site
analysis of the impacted area, interviews with local residents about their travel habits,
observations of foot traffic through the neighborhood, and an assessment of potential design
solutions. The final report recommends the development of a new trail system that would
increase the ease of pedestrian, bicycle, and wheelchair access to the station, while also
providing a valuable new open-space amenity for the area.

A Resident’s Guide to North Highline Annexation

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Municipal Annexation is one of the most powerful tools in urban planning, yet its use often sparks controversy and drawn-out political conflicts. In the Seattle area, the potential annexation of the unincorporated area of North Highline has been a subject of debate for over a decade. Annexation studies on unincorporated areas in the Seattle region are common but almost universally focus on the impacts from the perspective of the annexing city. In this study, I design a report to investigate the practical impacts of the potential annexation of North Highline by Seattle on the residents and business owners of the area. This serves to educate residents and address their most common questions to allow for informed decision making in the case of an election as part of the annexation process. Using a variety of resources collected from the City of Seattle and King County, I create a report detailing the major changes in taxation, regulation, and services that will affect North Highline residents following annexation. ​This will serve as a basis for discussion in the community by providing a shared set of facts and a method by which individuals can come to their own conclusions regarding the prospect of annexation.

Dream Acres

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Relevant to Western Washington State agricultural production, this project examines the impact of land use policy and related programs on the urban-rural divide in Pierce and King Counties. The urban-rural divide is a conceptual framework for understanding the social, economic, and political disparities between urban and rural life and how these disparities affect interactions within and across urban and rural communities. The policies and programs that are used to examine this conceptual framework are Agricultural Land Trusts, Agricultural Conservation Easements, Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easements, Transfer of Development Rights, and Zoning. Farmers, planners, and policy-makers are interviewed to understand how the urban-rural divide impacts agriculture as a land use in the region. The results of this research can be applied to future policy-making and planning and used to promote planning practices that are more inclusive and representative of farmer needs.

Why is Smoking Cigarettes So Popular in China?

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Over 300 million people in China smoke cigarettes. Indeed, throughout most of China, cigarette use is widely accepted and even promoted, while many people don’t believe or fully understand the harm cigarettes can cause. This project attempts to understand why cigarette smoking is so popular. Specifically, I ask whether certain social customs and cultural beliefs are driving tobacco-use in China. To address this question, I conducted background research on tobacco-use in China and other countries and examined the effectiveness of several strategies to control tobacco use. I also conducted an anonymous on-line survey of current smokers, past smokers, non-smokers, and second-hand smokers (n=458) focusing on the role of cultural beliefs in shaping attitudes about smoking behavior. The result of my research suggests that culture does play an important role in determining attitudes towards smoking and smoking behavior. Based on these results, I provide several culturally specific recommendations for limiting tobacco use in China.

Designs by Origin

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Human behavior can be understood through the lens of evolutionary psychology as the product of biological and psychological adaptations to an ancestral environment. This approach serves as my conceptual basis for design as I ask the question, how can we create public spaces best suited to our evolved needs as Homo sapiens? I begin the process by compiling a list of evolutionary theories for a variety of human behaviors. Preliminary designs for public spaces in a range of urban contexts are then sketched, expounded upon using digital design software including Adobe Illustrator and clarified for inclusion in my final product, the urban design look book: Designs by Origin. Existing public space designs accessed online serve as precedents within the final lookbook and as inspiration during my creative process. Accompanying my final designs are explanations of the evolutionary theories that inspired them as well as visual aids addressing both my creative process and the underlying science. This exploration of evolutionary psychology and urban design in tandem reveals a new method for design and a new lens through which the urban environment can be viewed. Designs by Origin will provide urban designers of all disciplines with an understanding of the dynamic natural process that produced their intended users and a relevant method for using this information to inform public space design.

Nature’s Value

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In our world, we standardize worth with money. We determine a market price for everything we care about–objects, services, experiences, information, time–and can compare worth between seemingly incomparable concepts. Anything that doesn’t have a market value is very difficult to count or weigh; and nature is one such concept. Ecosystem Services Valuation (ESV) is a way of attaching a market value to ecosystems in order to give them weight in policy decisions, to justify investments in environmental stewardship, and to reduce costs long-term. By assessing the monetary values of the goods and services ecosystems provide to humans, we can attempt to determine nature’s contribution to the economy and begin to give nature stake in larger issues. ESV has great potential for both businesses and government organizations that are trying to reduce their environmental footprints while increasing their economic well being. While the concept of ESV dates back to the late 1950s and early ‘60s and is used worldwide, ESV is not a ubiquitous practice. By creating a booklet with design inspired by popular educational video series, I seek to introduce the general public to the concept of ESV in the hope that they will be inspired to want to learn more, to engage in conversation about it, and to normalize the practice of accounting for the environment. In the booklet I establish credibility by explaining the history of ESV. Then, I outline ESV methodology and discuss applications of ESV through several case studies. The booklet concludes with actions the general public, businesses and government organizations alike can take in order to account for nature’s contributions to the economy and promote environmental sustainability.

Participatory Mapping for Community Engagement and Empowerment

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Mapping and spatial analysis can be powerful tools for producing knowledge and making decisions. Participatory mapping, which is a “bottom-up” form of map-making, can enable local communities to be directly involved in these processes. Participatory mapping can vary from small community workshops to online mapping applications, but whether a certain technique will be successful at engaging and empowering communities is dependent upon a variety of social, economic, and technological factors. This project explores the potential of different participatory mapping techniques for engaging and empowering local communities, particularly in small-scale asset-based planning efforts. Through a comprehensive literature review, an analysis of a set of case studies, and a survey of participatory mapping participants, I identify advantages and disadvantages of three different participatory mapping approaches. I synthesize this research into a set of best practices for selecting a participatory mapping method and conducting mapping activities, which can provide guidance for those who are hoping to use participatory mapping in their own spatial decision-making processes. While there is no single approach that will always be successful, this project can help planners and community leaders better understand the benefits and drawbacks of certain mapping techniques in order to more effectively engage and empower their communities in spatial decision-making processes.