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This paper examines "e-planning," or the use of computer-based systems to conduct planning and decision-making, in the context of community forest management. E-planning is growing in the field of environmental planning, as it promises greater equity in terms of public participation. However, a lack of scholarly work exists on the applicability for forest planning. During the COVID-19 pandemic, county foresters and other natural resource professionals in Vermont turned to e-planning when safety restrictions limited their ability to engage in face-to-face efforts. This provided an opportunity to collect empirical data about the potential for e-planning to support the public engagement process in the context of forest planning. We provide an overview of e-planning theory and examine data from Vermont to explore the promise of e-planning for forest management. We make recommendations about the applicability of e-planning in the context of forest planning, and highlight areas for future research to investigate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As interest in local food systems as a community development tool increases, scholars and practitioners are looking for methods to count progress toward benchmarks. This paper reports on efforts to count local food consumption as part of a statewide strategic plan for food systems development in Vermont. It provides longitudinal data from three waves of counting (2011, 2014, and 2017), finding increases over time due to both increased consumption and improved counting methods. The paper reflects on successes and challenges over the study period, focusing on data availability, key assumptions, and limitations. It concludes with future directions of inquiry into measuring food relocalization efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The term "working landscape" (WL) is increasingly used by American planners and policy makers to describe the rural places and livelihoods they aim to shape. This paper draws from a mixed-methods study of WL language as a collective action frame in the state of Vermont, where WL has been formalized into policy. Natural resource leaders and professionals share a common definition of WL that is supported by four key beliefs. However, interviews conducted in two representative farming communities suggest that landuse practitioners have not adopted WL language, and in some cases are skeptical of its meaning. The analysis explores potential explanations for the failure of the WL collective action frame to resonate across scales. The paper argues for a bottom-up planning approach that produces working landscapes policies that allow for diverse forms of work and accommodate the specificities of place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proponents of the local food movement point to its environmental, economic, and social benefits, yet there is little research on the extent to which particular local food projects live up to these promises. Vermont leads the country in farm stands, direct-to-consumer sales, and farmers' markets per capita and the town of Hardwick, Vermont has received substantial media attention for its growing economy based on new food and agriculture businesses, including being the subject of a book entitled The Town that Food Saved. Using interviews with local food participants and analysis of US Census data, the paper assesses the impact of the local food economy in Hardwick using environmental, economic, and social outcomes. The paper also examines how the agricultural renaissance there has been accepted, resisted, and shaped by local actors. Using Census data, the paper finds that between 2000 and 2016, the unemployment rate in Hardwick remained steady, mean incomes increased, and 296 new jobs have been retained. In addition, the percentage of families in Hardwick with income below the poverty level decreased between 2000 and 2016, and the percentage of families accessing supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) benefits increased. The paper also finds that many participants in the Hardwick food economy have concerns about the accessibility, affordability, and inclusivity of the newer food-based projects there. The paper concludes with a discussion of the ways in which Hardwick fulfils some of the hopes and concerns of the local food movement, and the potential for place-based agricultural development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prompted by the need to move an aged and sorely neglected print reference collection into a new smaller academic medical library, the Reference Team of the Dana Medical Library at the University of Vermont embarked on a massive project to shrink and revitalize its paper reference collection. Employing a comprehensive and contemporary approach, the project ultimately resulted in a refurbished collection that would more effectively meet the information needs of the 21st century library user. This paper describes the process employed, and the numerous quality improvements to the physical collection, supporting infrastructure, and collection management practices that resulted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public choice literature divides the rationality of voting between instrumental and expressive. In this paper, we take the Vermont legislature in passing the H. 57 bill as a case to explain some of the determinants of expressive voting empirically. The H.57 bill declares that no government entity can interfere with, or restrict, a consenting individual's right to abortion care across the entire gestation period. However, the bill has not changed the previously status quo of the state towards abortion rights. Thus, it creates a situation in which we can analyze the legislator's voting behavior through the lens of an expressive voting framework. We utilize a high dimensional dataset and post-double-selection LASSO method to explain the channels that influence the expressive voting on the H. 57 bill. We web scrape the lower and upper chamber voting data on H.57 bill and use the 2017 American Community Survey 5-year estimates to retrieve 89 different socioeconomic, housing, and demographic characteristics of State Legislative Districts. Our results suggest channels of poverty, gender, and population diversity are some crucial mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about several papers discussed at the seventh and eighth meetings of the Conferences on Science and World Affairs in Stowe, Vermont is presented. The seventh conference dealt with international cooperation in science. The eight conference focused on disarmament and world security. Other papers centered on issues regarding demilitarized zones, test-ban agreements and the economic consequences of disarmament.

The forest sector can play a significant role in climate change mitigation. We evaluated forest sector carbon trends and potential mitigation scenarios in Vermont using a systems‐based modeling framework that accounts for net emissions from all forest sector components. These components comprise (1) the forest ecosystem, including land‐use change, (2) harvested wood products (HWP), and (3) substitution effects associated with using renewable wood‐based products and fuels in place of more emission‐intensive materials and fossil fuel‐based energy. We assessed baseline carbon trends from 1995 through 2050 using a business as usual (BAU) scenario. Emission reductions associated with different forest management and HWP scenarios were evaluated relative to the BAU scenario from 2020 to 2050. We estimated uncertainty for each forest sector component and used a Monte Carlo approach to estimate the distribution of cumulative total mitigation for each scenario relative to baseline. Our analysis indicates that the strength of the forest sector carbon sink in Vermont has been declining and will continue to decline over coming decades under the BAU scenario. However, several scenarios evaluated here could be effective in reducing emissions and enhancing carbon uptake. Shifting HWP to longer‐lived commodities resulted in a 14% reduction in net cumulative emissions by 2050, the largest reduction of all scenarios. A scenario that combined extending harvest rotations, utilizing additional harvest residues for bioenergy, and increasing forest productivity resulted in a 12% reduction in net cumulative emissions. Shifting commodities from pulp and paper to bioenergy showed a 7.3% reduction in emissions. In contrast, shortening rotations to increase harvests for bioenergy use resulted in a 5.5% increase in emissions. In summary, model simulations suggest that net emissions could be reduced by up to 14% relative to BAU, depending on the management and HWP‐use scenario. Combining multiple scenarios could further enhance reductions. However, realizing the full climate mitigation potential of these forests may be challenging due to socioeconomic barriers to implementation, as well as alternative management objectives that must be considered along with carbon sequestration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: While statistics related to occupational injuries exist at state and national levels, there are notable difficulties with using these to understand non-fatal injuries trends in agriculture, forestry, and commercial fishing. This paper describes the development and testing of a crosswalk between ICD-10-CM external cause of injury codes (E-codes) for agriculture, forestry, and fishing (AFF) and the Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS). By using this crosswalk, researchers can efficiently process hospitalization data and quickly assemble relevant cases of AFF injuries useful for epidemiological tracking. Methods: All 6810 ICD-10-CM E- codes were double-reviewed and tagged for AFF- relatedness. Those related to AFF were then coded into a crosswalk to OIICS. The crosswalk was tested on hospital data (inpatient, outpatient, and emergency department) from New York, Massachusetts, and Vermont using SAS9.3. Injury records were characterized by type of event, source of injury, and by general demographics using descriptive epidemiology. Results: Of the 6810 E-codes available in the ICD-10-CM scheme, 263 different E-codes were ultimately classified as 1 = true case, 2 = traumatic/acute and suspected AFF, or 3 = AFF and suspected traumatic/acute. The crosswalk mapping identified 9969 patient records either confirmed to be or suspected to be an AFF injury out of a total of 38,412,241 records in the datasets, combined. Of these, 963 were true cases of agricultural injury. The remaining 9006 were suspected AFF cases, where the E-code was not specific enough to assign certainty to the record's work-relatedness. For the true agricultural cases, the most frequent combinations presented were contact with agricultural/garden equipment (301), non-roadway incident involving off-road vehicle (222), and struck by cow or other bovine (150). For suspected agricultural cases, the majority (68.2%) represent animal-related injuries. Conclusions: The crosswalk provides a reproducible, low-cost, rapid means to identify and code AFF injuries from hospital data. The use of this crosswalk is best suited to identifying true agricultural cases; however, capturing suspected cases of agriculture, forestry, and fishing injury also provides valuable data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: School meals help combat consequences of poverty for child development. Universal school meal programs provide all children free meals regardless of income; outcomes are under-studied. Methods: This paper analyzes the impacts of universal school meals on multiple domains of child development, including schools' social climates, student academics and behavior, family–school relationships, and school finances. In total, 240 staff at 57 K-12 universal meal schools in Vermont were surveyed in 2017. Results: Universal meals yield positive results for Vermont children and schools. Policymakers and researchers will find this data relevant, as it represents an early statewide study of K-12 universal meal programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Eastern Townships Studies / Revue d'études des Cantons-de-l'Est (JETS/RECE) is the property of Eastern Townships Resource Centre and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper leverages a quasi-natural experiment in Vermont to analyze the effects of mandatory GMO labeling on consumer demand. The United States recently mandated disclosure labels on all foods that contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs), despite longstanding, widespread use of voluntary third-party non-GMO labeling. We leverage the earlier passage and implementation of a mandatory GMO labeling law in Vermont as a quasi-natural experiment to show that adding this mandatory labeling into a market with pre-existing voluntary non-GMO labels had no effect on demand. Instead, the legislative process made consumers aware of GMO topics and increased non-GMO product sales before the GMO labeling mandate went into effect. The GMO-related legislative processes also increased non-GMO product demand in other states that considered, but did not implement, GMO labeling mandates. We find that 36% of new non-GMO product adoption can be explained by differences in consumer awareness tied to legislative activity. Our findings suggest that voluntary non-GMO labels may have provided an efficient disclosure mechanism without mandatory GMO labels. History: Avi Goldfarb served as the senior editor and Anja Lambrecht served as associate editor for this article. Funding: This research was funded in part by the Cornell University Business of Food Small Grants Program. Supplemental Material: The online appendices and data are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mksc.2022.1375. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hands-on inquiry-based educational modules were designed for two undergraduate geotechnical engineering courses at the University of Vermont. The modules were designed to achieve three objectives: (1) meet the goals of our ongoing civil and environmental engineering curricular reform (e.g., inquiry-based experiential learning and civic engagement through service-learning); (2) reach higher levels of Bloom’s taxonomy in specific topical areas addressed by the modules; and (3) help achieve Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) outcomes for civil and environmental engineering programs. All four modules were conducted within team settings and required students to write formal technical papers or reports followed by presentations. An additional underlying objective was the development of students’ interpersonal and communication skills. The educational modules included: (1) Atterberg limits using Casagrande and fall cone devices; (2) physical, analytical, and numerical modelings of steady-state seepage; (3) validation of undrained slope stability, bearing capacity of shallow foundations, and active and passive lateral earth pressure analytical solutions using centrifuge modeling; and (4) service-learning projects related to foundations, retaining structures, or slope stability for rehabilitation of historic structures. Student reflection and self-assessment activities were conducted. The student self-assessment results and assessments of student work indicated that many of the curricular reform objectives, ABET outcomes, and higher levels of Bloom’s taxonomy could be reached through these modules. Modules similar to these could be effective in other engineering disciplines and subdisciplines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Escritos is the property of Escritos and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Earlier management systems were typically developed to manage individual components of the transportation system. More recently, these systems have been evolving into integrated infrastructure management systems (IIMSs) that simultaneously consider the needs of the different components of the entire transportation system. This paper describes the preliminary experience of a small urban area, located in northwestern Vermont, with the development of a framework for an IIMS. The framework, which is designed to manage the needs of six different components of the transportation system, is based on the use of available off-the-shelf tools whenever possible, and the use of geographic information systems (GIS) software to serve as an integration platform, as well as a visual interface. Within this framework, budget allocation among the competing needs of the different transportation components is determined using a mathematical programming approach. The paper concludes with a case study that describes how the developed framework is applied to the city of South Burlington, Vermont. Important lessons learned from this case study are also summarized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a three-stage model to introduce legislative learning into the study of social welfare policy at the undergraduate level. It provides strategies to prepare students to engage in the legislative process, to empower undergraduate students to participate in legislative activity, and to integrate their learning. Students (n=18) report that the impact of their legislative learning experiences includes: overcoming fear of engagement and justifying participation, greater comprehension of the legislative process, understanding the role of policy work within the profession, and becoming empowered and gaining voice. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Features the electric insulation company USSamica-Isovolta Inc. which is based in Rutland, Vermont. Provider of mica tapes and wrappers; Co-chief executive officers Jon Roberts and Kevin Sheehy; Lance Crow as head of sales management; Scott Montross as head of product management; Dana Rackliffe as head of engineering.

Background/Objective: Pain is one of the most common chronic conditions in the US, estimated to affect 20.9% of the population (51.6 million people). We evaluated the Partners Aligned in Transformative Healing (PATH) program at University Medical Center's Comprehensive Pain Program clinic. Feasibility, initial clinical and financial results were assessed to inform payers' support for PATH, an integrative transdisciplinary program within a bundled payment format. Methods: Participants completed a multi-week program including integrative therapies, with empirically validated assessment surveys administered at the beginning and end of the program. Insurance claims data were analyzed 12 months pre- and post-program. Statistical significance of pre-post differences was assessed by paired T-tests with P < 0.05. Results: Between June 2019 and August 2022, 170 individuals enrolled in PATH, 151 (88.8%) completed the program, and 121 participants completed outcome surveys. Participants were predominately White, non-Hispanic (98%), female (76%), with an average age of 49.8. All participant-reported clinical outcomes (PROs) showed statistically significant improvement from baseline to final assessment, and some but not all were clinically significant. PEG subscale of average pain interference, enjoyment of life, and interference with general activity each decreased. The T-scores for the following domains of PROMIS-29 decreased: Pain interference; fatigue; sleep disturbance; anxiety, and depression. The PROMIS-29 domains of overall physical function and social roles and activities mean T-scores increased. Per Member Per Month (PMPM) total cost of care decreased by $462 (18%). Emergency room utilization for all diagnoses decreased by 457 visits/1000 patients (65%), and for pain-related diagnoses by 194 visits/1000 patients (67%) during the observation period. Conclusions: Results suggest that the PATH Program is a feasible and acceptable model that shows initial effectiveness relative to short-term patient-reported clinical outcomes and shows signs of durability in both utilization and financial outcomes at 1 year. The results support continued study including a multi-site RCT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historic preservation is an important part of community resilience to natural hazards. In the aftermath of disasters, however, preservationists sometimes struggle to find the resources or support necessary to repair or protect historic resources. Disasteraffected communities in the United States have used the Main Street Program to help guide their recovery efforts, with positive outcomes for historic preservation. In this paper we use an explanatory case study research design to analyze three communities that have used Main Street during post-disaster recovery: Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Waterbury, Vermont; and Lyons, Colorado. We find that the Main Street Program has helped preservationists overcome common barriers to recovery by (1) bringing together diverse stakeholders with an interest in historic resources; (2) leveraging the strengths of pre-disaster networks and relationships; and (3) linking the restoration and protection of historic resources to economic recovery and revitalization. The use of the Main Street Program is an example of a successful collaborative governance approach to disaster recovery, which has important implications for heritage professionals and urban planners globally. While limited in their breadth and areas of focus, these cases show that the Main Street Program has been a unique tool for post-disaster community recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews state strategies for incorporating performance assessment in policy and practice. Specifically, the paper reviews the use of performance assessment in 12 states in the Innovation Lab Network, a group committed to developing systems of assessment that provide meaningful measures of college and career readiness. This review suggests that states relied on four central approaches for integrating performance assessment in state and local systems of assessment: 1) classroom purposes, 2) graduation requirement, 3) school accountability purposes, or 4) federal accountability. We review these approaches and the benefits and challenges associated with each strategy.

Food hubs (FHs) have been widely touted and studied as means of expanding markets for local and regional food. One crucial area that has not received a great deal of attention is FHs’ impact on suppliers, notably farmers and small-scale manufacturers. This paper presents results of a series of 13 surveys with suppliers of two FHs in rural Vermont. Our results suggest that the FHs are serving a valuable service, providing another market outlet for suppliers. While volumes are small, suppliers find them to be worthwhile. Our implications include emphasizing food access and farm viability missions through market and supplier development while letting other organizations provide technical assistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Current trends in vocational rehabilitation value demand-side "dual customer" approaches that serve both businesses and job seekers with disabilities, as well as approaches that use rapid engagement in work-based experiences. OBJECTIVE: This conceptual paper describes the evolution of Progressive Employment (PE) in Vermont and aims to define the key features and critical components of PE as a distinct model of dual customer service delivery. CONCLUSION: The PE approach has promise as an effective dual customer model with high potential for replicability in employment systems, especially for job seekers with little or no successful work experience. Salient elements of the model and replication considerations are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photovoltaic panels, electric vehicles, and vehicle-to-grid technologies are becoming more common and hold significant promises to improve the grid and foster the energy transition. However, significant questions remain unanswered with respect to who should invest in this equipment and what tariff should be used. This paper examines whether the distribution company or prosumer should invest in and manage Distributed Energy Resources (DER), the ideal combination of DER to utilize, and the appropriate tariff to implement. Central to this analysis is the assessment of different stakeholder objectives, particularly from the investor's perspective, where net present value is used as the primary criterion for evaluating the different investment scenarios. Additionally, the impact of these scenarios on the annual system cost is calculated. A mathematical scenario analysis model is developed to simulate the operation of DER and energy management systems. This model utilizes the Vermont electricity grid's real-world consumption, generation data, and cost structures. The results underscore the significance of incorporating vehicle-to-grid technology to enhance the profitability of DER investments. This inclusion of specific data sources and stakeholder criteria aims to provide insight into the complex dynamics of smart-home deployment. • EVs for V2G is the best investment scenario for the distributor. • Investment in solar PV and V2G returns the highest NPV for prosumers. • Offering a special rate for EV usage reduces both distributor and prosumer costs. • Selling back to the grid is necessary to make prosumer's investments profitable. • Sensitivity analyses are carried out on the load and size of the PV and Battery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]