http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/39366 Search the Channel search http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/simple-search http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/64292 Title: The Environment on our Doorsteps: Community Restorative Justice and the Roots of Sustainability<br/><br/>Authors: McCabe, Katherine<br/><br/>Abstract: The leading paradigms of sustainability are fraught with tremendousshortcomings and ambiguities in relation to both peace and justice, and lack anysignificant discourse on the necessity of radically transforming our political institutions toincorporate sustainability issues into the development agenda. In an effort to addressthese shortcomings, a new paradigm called just sustainability has emerged. Justsustainability is an approach that recognizes the inseparable nature of social andenvironmental justice and sustainability, and pushes for organizations and governmentalinstitutions to become more aware of the relationships that exist between inequality,injustice and environmentally unsustainable practices (Agyeman 2005). This studyprovides a critical assessment of Community Restorative Justice (CRJ), a grassroots,community-based initiative in the north of Ireland dedicated to creating change throughan empowering, participatory process to build a just community that is tolerant,responsive, and inclusive.Restorative justice is a response to crime and anti-social behavior that is “aimed atrepairing the harm caused by a criminal act and restoring the balance in the communityaffected by the criminal act” (Government of British Columbia 2006); central to manyrestorative justice programs—CRJ included—is the idea that crimes are committedagainst individuals or communities as opposed to the state. Since its creation in 1996,CRJ has come to play an integral role in the continuing Irish peace process, as it providesalternatives to punishment violence through its conflict mediation and education servicesand stresses above all else that those most affected should have the opportunity toparticipate in the regenerative process.Until recently, few scholars have thought to emphasize the roles that peace andjustice can play as strategies in a sustainable development framework, let alone thecontributions that an organization such as CRJ can make to both the environmentaljustice movement and broader struggles for social and economic equality. This paperseeks to demonstrate how the work of CRJ and its place within the greater West Belfastcommunity contribute to a more solid foundation for just sustainable developmentthrough efforts toward local decision-making, participation and empowerment, and thereclamation of community/sovereignty; the reconfiguration of relationships withincommunities and between different levels of government; and the connections betweenviolence, inequality, quality of life, and community development.The assessment of CRJ and its place within the context of just sustainability willprovide an alternative conceptualization of the connection between issues of humansecurity, development, and environmental justice. The analysis of this integratedapproach can be applied to both the current sustainability discourse, as well as currentgrassroots activist efforts to create more creative, proactive, and effective strategies thatare holistic in nature and recognize the critical links between economic opportunity,social welfare, and quality of life. Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/64059 Title: Femmes: Front and Center<br/><br/>Authors: Kurzawa, Kristin<br/><br/>Abstract: Kurzawa, 2AbstractFemmes Front and Center is a visual and textual inquiry into the dynamics of queer femmeperformers within the queer community. Visually, Femmes: Front and Center brings the viewerface to face with queer femme performers through large scale, color photographs framed inclassic, exhibition style. The exhibit reveals the intersections of gender identity, queerness, bodysize, race, and dis/ability. Femmes Front and Center, the written work, explores the history ofqueer performance culture from gay men and drag queens to drag kings to queer femme dragqueens. It theorizes that queer femme performers and dis/abled queer femmes are disruptingexisting paradigms of drag performance, gender identity, and body acceptance. Mon, 20 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/64058 Title: Relish the Lick<br/><br/>Authors: Stern, Lindsay Anne<br/><br/>Abstract: Relish the Lick is a series of collages of human and animal bodies that explorethe emotional frictions of interpersonal relationships that begin around the kitchentable. The images’ ambiguous narratives are revealed within the composition of thefigures themselves, which are predominantly constructed of food imagery. Thiswork calls into question how people physically and emotionally feed off each other.Archetypal relationships, hierarchies of power and vulnerability, beauty and thegrotesque, as well as dinner and dessert play parts in this visual theater. Organizedin nearly empty environments, providing the most minimal of contexts, these storiesare anywhere and everywhere. This MFA thesis document discusses the imagescreated for Relish the Lick and reflects on the artistic, cultural, and textual influencesfor this body of work. Mon, 20 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/64057 Title: Articulating Things Into Existence<br/><br/>Authors: Stewart, Ann<br/><br/>Abstract: Through the act of drawing, the researcher explores the process of making sense ofmaking sense as well as the relationship between seeing and knowing. Pulling fromthe disciplines of art, cognitive science, philosophy, and architecture, this thesislooks at how the artist observes, constructs, and analyzes her surroundings as wellas the artwork she creates from her investigation. A meticulous mark makingand process driven working practice is the foundation for her work, which aims togive permanence to the fleeting process of perception. Sat, 01 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT