Climate change is a global phenomenon that is disproportionately impacting people in developing countries. One coping mechanism that has been observed in response to climate change is migration. This paper attempts to understand the role of climate change as a driver of migration in Papua New Guinea, a complex and under-researched country in Oceania. Past research suggests a complicated story, and that migration in response to climate change is not a simple concept. In order add to the existing literature, a variety of individual, household, and community-level variables are analyzed from a survey of households in rural Papua New Guinea. These variables are analyzed in conjunction with self-reported environmental shocks to determine the impact on migration across time. The results suggest that environmental shocks increase the probability of an individual migrating, with various socioeconomic factors acting as push and pull factors.

The past decades have seen major changes with globalization, increased trade, digital technologies, and the increased threat of climate change consequences. These changes in trends have changed how the world communicates, travels, produces, manufactures, and develops. Yet despite having the most advanced technologies and the most connected world to date, other aspects of development and quality of life have not kept up the pace in adapting and changing based on these trends. Specifically in developing countries, while the outside environment may be changing, the systems, structures, and societal values in place have not fully adapted. These aspects of society are naturally slower to change which can be dangerous when dealing with the current issues the world faces, for example the proven increase in climate change consequences. The consequences of slow or no changes at all in systems, structures, and societal values fall disproportionately on women who are often now bearing more responsibility without the benefits due to outdated structures that were developed based on other environments and priorities. This gap between the formal structures and the rapidly changing environments and its effect on women can be seen through analyzing specific common trends in developing countries, such as the feminization of agriculture and climate change. Analyzing this gap from these specific trends can give insight into possible solutions to both speed up the closing of the gap and lessen the burdens for women in the meantime. The role of informal or community networks should be considered as a possible way to do this. The case of St. Lucia and its experience with both the feminization of agriculture and the threat of climate change will be analyzed to understand how informal or community networks could serve to help close the gap and lessen the burdens for women.

This thesis examines the influence of the Russian oil firm Lukoil on the economic and cultural landscape of the town of Kogalym. Analyzing the propensity of Lukoil to facilitate the creation of both physical and cultural infrastructure, I scrutinize the effects of intervention for the sake of profit. Especially in rural Siberian towns that are in close proximity to petroleum reserves, oil companies often fund cultural tradition, identity, and education projects. In doing this, these corporations decide which elements of Russian culture are worthy of celebration and remembrance. I further argue that vulnerable people are typically subjugated by oil firms in the pursuit of revenue. Able-bodied men are exploited for their labor, women are counted on to turn temporary settlements-which I define as "shift cities"-into thriving cities, and indigenous Russians are expected to give up land that could aid in the oil production process. With seemingly endless wealth at its disposal, companies like Lukoil attempt to instill "ideal" values into the residents of their cities in an attempt to curate a group of people that feel indebted to the firms for funding their livelihoods. By autonomously deciding what defines Russian identity, I argue that these oil conglomerates ultimately exert financial and cultural control on the people they purport to be helping. This is not without consequence, and I carefully explore the unintended effects of this intervention, such as the rise of illicit economies, arrested development shift cities, the plight of indigenous Russians who find themselves in land disputes with oil firms, and the environmental consequences of the imperfect Russian oil infrastructure.

In 2015, the Law and Justice Party [Prawo I Sprawiedliwość, PiS] won the majority of seats in parliament and took control of Poland. PiS has a populist platform that has led to undemocratic practices, especially in the judicial branch, that are being questioned by the EU. This study evaluates the role that globalization, a concept that has been linked to other European countries’ citizens' appeal to right-wing populist groups, has in Poland’s rise of PiS. Two Polish websites, Przeglad and Wprost were analyzed to observe the change in positive and negative language before and after PiS’s rise to power and to observe how it has impacted party polarization. Articles that had one or more of eight key terms associated with globalization were analyzed for the negativity and positivity. Additionally, when observing sentiment over time, the term “globalization” has converged between the two websites, while “WTO” has remained consistent. Overall, the results showed that language has shifted towards neutrality, with a movement from strong positive or strong negative, to weak positive and weak negative; however, with only a few key terms being statistically significant there is a need for further research into more key terms and additional websites.

The purpose of this paper is to explore and minimum wage and whether it serves its purpose of fighting poverty. After extensive research on the origin and purpose of minimum wage laws in the US via reading different studies and weighing its positive and negative effects, I have found that minimum wage is not the most effective tool to fight poverty. There exist programs that would be more beneficial in fighting poverty such as earned-income tax credit (EITC) or training programs.

Humans are intrigued, drawn to, inspired by beautiful things. Various philosophers and
social commentators have contributed to this essential inquiry: what is Beauty? And
furthermore, are there objective patterns within what different people consider beautiful? I will
explore this through both the lenses of physical beauty and character beauty. In faces, there is the study of physical attractiveness - is it evolutionary, personal preference, or something more universal?

By using the four concepts of judgement of beauty laid out by Kant, supplemented with psychological research on humans' attractiveness ratings of faces, we will be able to get closer to the idea of a truly beautiful face. This face, striking in nature, is not simply attractive, but more. It is a face that is, using Kant's framework, disinterested, universal, purposive without purpose, and necessary.

The following honors thesis analyzes the history of advertising in the state of Arizona since the late 19th century and its overall impact on economic development. Advertising is defined as the action of calling something to the attention of the public, especially by paid announcements; and economic development is defined as the process whereby simple economies are transformed into modern industrial economies. This paper will analyze the influence of key people, events, locations, and publications on consumer behavior and discuss how they contributed to tourism in the state and, subsequently, economic growth. By speaking to experts on Arizona history, economic development and tourism as well as analyzing a variety of historical multimedia, I will discuss how advertising methods evolved over time and how they contributed to increased interest and growth within the state.

The gig economy is a rapidly growing portion of the US labor landscape. It is appealing to many individuals, as it provides autonomy for workers and opens up increased opportunities for working jobs with desirable schedules. The new California legislation, Assembly Bill 5, is likely to disrupt this sector by increasing costs for employers and removing autonomy from independent contractors with the ABC test that challenges current legal classifications of independent contractors. The ABC test has previously been passed in Massachusetts in 2004 and this paper aims to determine how the test has impacted the Massachusetts self-employment sector. A difference-in-differences estimation and linear regression model were analyzed to accurately determine the impact. A minimal negative correlation was found between the introduction of the ABC test in Massachusetts and the proportion of self-employed individuals in Massachusetts post-treatment. It was also found that the percentage change of average wages for self-employed individuals sharply increased in the first year directly following the implementation of the ABC test in Massachusetts and then decreased in the next year. The regression showed little correlation between the ABC test and self-employment in Massachusetts, as the p-value was not significant at the 5% level for the difference-in-differences interaction term, possibly due to limitations of the model.

Cities are living systems. Their form and function are constantly changing to reflect the preferences and needs of their residents. One process of change in a city occurs when rapid investment pours into a neighborhood that was previously neglected. This so-called revitalization serves as a catalyst for many city improvements like new residential buildings, glamours commercial complexes, and even enhanced public transit. This process, also known as gentrification, can be a force for good as it results in population growth and economic opportunity. But with enough investment, prices -- including rent -- can be forced upwards equally as rapid. This is when gentrification can result in potentially negative outcomes for residents who can not keep up with the rent increases and are displaced from a city. Culture, as defined by people and business in an area, is the pride of many cities. A loss of culture through displacement is an outcome that anti-gentrification advocates want to avoid. But, cultural displacement may not always comprise a loss. In certain cases, displacement is just the natural byproduct of city evolution. An ideal solution to this state of affairs would be for cities to encourage gentrification while discouraging displacement. This study will explore how.