Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/21474

The Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS) is administered by the National Center for Smart Growth at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD). It is a campus-wide initiative that harnesses the expertise of UMD faculty and the energy and ingenuity of UMD students to help Maryland communities become more environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable. PALS is designed to provide innovative, low-cost assistance to local governments while creating real-world problem-solving experiences for University of Maryland graduate and undergraduate students.

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Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    Glen Burnie Town Center Placemaking
    (Partnership for Action Learning Sustainability (PALS), 2024-05) Austin, Lillian; Cedeno, Isabel; Craig, Spencer; Garlow, Caitlin; Hernandez, Felix; Kremer, Erin; Rasmussen, Kelly; Sweeney, Laura; Whalen, Evan; Kweon, Byoung-Suk
    Glen Burnie Town Center is located at the intersection of Baltimore-Annapolis Boulevard and Crain Highway, in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. The Town Center is surrounded by a suburban neighborhood and in close proximity to the Baltimore & Annapolis Trail, a 13-mile paved biking and walking trail along a former railroad track. Glen Burnie Town Center is a state and county priority for revitalization and redevelopment. The scope for this design project included the plaza, the parking garage, and the streetscape that connects the two.
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    Creative Placemaking Along the Kenilworth Avenue Corridor
    (Partnership for Action Learning Sustainability (PALS), 2024-05) Cavanaugh, Stephanie; Hudson, Lauren; Josar, Eve; Kenney, Elliott; Morrison, Phoenix; Pully, Stephanie; Watkiss, Dana; Zaman, Auran; Sullivan, Jack
    The Purple Line will be a Light Rail connection that allows public transportation from New Carrollton to Bethesda with several stops along the way. One of those stops is at the Kenilworth Avenue and MD-410 intersection in Riverdale Park. The Landscape Architecture Urban Design Studio designed strategies and concepts to improve on the current plan for the streetscape along Kenilworth Ave. and MD-410 surrounding the new Light Rail Station. Students agreed to decrease road sizes, add sidewalks on either side of Kenilworth and MD-410, introduce bike lanes, remove slip lanes, manage stormwater, and add bus modality. At the core of the student’s design is accessibility for pedestrians and safe street crossings while balancing street character, shade, comfort, and shelter from vehicular traffic. Students implemented Placemaking strategies to communicate the community’s desires and plans for future investment.
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    Small Forest Protection Program
    (Partnership for Action Learning Sustainability (PALS), 2023-12) Anderson, Danielle; Brumagin, Taylor; Flores, Alessandra; Garrett, Shannon; Rios, Anabella; Sennewald, Kaitlin; Veopradith, Tiffany; Carroll, Mark
    The Montgomery County Planning Department asked our team of Environmental Science and Policy capstone students at the University of Maryland to create a set of deliverables that would support the creation of Montgomery Planning’s Small Forest Protection Program. This program will allow owners of small, forested properties to help developers meet offsite forest retention requirements under the Forest Conservation Law. A reinterpretation of the County’s Forest Conservation Law limits the availability of offsite forest credits available for purchase by developers seeking to meet their forest-retention requirements. The new small forest program being launched by Montgomery Planning will meet the need for additional forest availability for developers to meet offsite retention requirements. The project’s deliverables are an informative webpage outline and application process for prospective program participants; an attribute table of potentially eligible property owners and their contact information, identified via spatial analysis using Geographical Information Systems; and a draft letter of solicitation to property owners informing them of how they can be involved in the program. These deliverables were founded primarily on research into Montgomery Planning’s website and its previous initiatives. Existing webpages were analyzed to determine the features that contribute to their current success. To identify property owners for the program, a GIS map was constructed by conducting a spatial analysis of various layers provided by Montgomery Planning. From this map, potentially eligible property owners were identified to be contacted with the letter of solicitation. In our final webpage guideline, we include a program overview, requirements for property owners, how they can apply, and information for developers. Additionally, we include Frequently Asked Questions and a section of contact information for department staff. Finally, the application form layout includes all the information property owners need to be considered for inclusion in the program. Using the GIS map, almost 10,000 potentially eligible properties were identified. Several specific areas from the initial property list are recommended for closer attention due to the community benefits and ecosystem services that they provide. These properties may be considered for future contact by Montgomery Planning as they launch the new small forest program.
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    Analyzing Micro-Local Communication Technologies to Support an On-Campus Agroecology Corridor
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2020) Bynum, Lashawnda; Green, Tamia; Jia, Emily; Khare, Kelly; Namin, Ali; Panzer, Rich
    The College of Agriculture and Natural Resources seeks to to raise awareness of and stimulate conversations about sustainability, food security, and food supply within the University of Maryland and is pursuing the creation of an Agroecology Corridor. This project would connect the network of green spaces and sustainability projects on campus to maximize their use in teaching, demonstrations, community outreach, and research. To support that connection and determine the best solutions, our team researched eight microcommunication technologies, and are propose the three most effective technologies we believe will assist the College achieve its goal. The research considered multiple criteria including affordability, accessibility, and durability. The report’s four sections follow each step of the project: • an initial technology analysis introduces and describes the eight micro-communication technologies and examines their advantages, disadvantages and cost estimates • case studies that consider the applications of each technology in different campus spaces for varied user demographics • final recommendations for the top three technologies (beacons, push notifications, and nature signs) that our team believes would be the most effective • next steps for groups that may continue this project. Through research and analysis, this report aims to provide critical background information about beacons, push notifications, and nature signs as well as their potential for implementation on the University of Maryland campus. With proper integration, these technologies will help foster interest and important discussion about green spaces throughout campus. This report will also serve as the foundation for the project’s future stages as it continues in coming semesters.
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    Stormwater Maintenance Assessment and Recommendations
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2020) Bishop, Zack; Cerpa, Candela; Edmonds, Kimberly; Lipsky, Emma; Ramotnik, Sara; West, Tara; Yarborough, Aniya; Spivy, Annette
    Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning (M-NCPPC), which operates under Prince George's County (PGC) Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR), is responsible for approximately 194 stormwater management systems (SWM) throughout the county that range in scale, complexity, and type. The management of these assets is currently overseen by the Maintenance and Development Division, however, their staff lacks the expertise and training to repair and maintain these structures. Furthermore, an updated best management practices (BMP) maintenance manual is not available for staff and many existing structures need upgrading to meet current standards. Our team aims to assist M-NCPPC in the maintenance and development of its stormwater management structures. To accomplish this, we completed a literature review of best practices for stormwater management, curated customized checklists, and visited nine of the Department’s stormwater management assets to assess their condition. We also propose recommendations for improvements of existing structures. This section of our research aims to assist M-NCPPC staff in maintaining existing and potential new SWM structures. The Department also seeks consolidate its current SWM assets into standardized categories to make forecasting potential maintenance costs and schedules easier. The Department would like to capture best practices used by similar agencies to create standards and start tracking spending metrics of these best practices and become more effective stewards of taxpayer money. This report includes a comparative literature review of national and international SWM BMPs to consolidate the current 16 SWM categories. Based on our research and on an assessment of the nine sites visited, we were able to identify opportunities for improvement and create maintenance guidelines. We hope this work, along with an assessment by an appropriate specialist, helps M-NCPPC maintain and improve existing structures, and develop new stormwater management structures.
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    Flooding in Patapsco Valley State Park: Recommendations for Signage and Communication Materials
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2020) Acuña, Kierstin; Colbert, Jack; Garvey, Christina; Hebner, Briley; Joy, Katie; Plotkin, Jordan; Wilhelm-Glab, Christiana; Boules, Caroline; Miralles-Barboza, Andrea
    Patapsco Valley State Park (PVSP) and its surrounding areas have been subject to increased flooding in recent years. In 2016 and 2018, the area experienced two 1,000-year floods (Halverson, 2018) that significantly damaged the park. Flooding events of this severity and magnitude are expected to be exacerbated in the future due to rapidly increasing impacts from climate change (Denchak, 2019). The park has found it challenging to communicate flood risks to visitors. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR), which manages PVSP, is concerned that visitors don’t plan ahead when they attend the park, and don’t know the risks involved in hiking through the park, which puts them at a greater risk of harm in the event of a flood. Additionally, many PVSP visitors don’t speak or read English, which creates a significant communication gap between visitors and the park to convey safety messages about flooding. This project aims to determine the most effective language for signage and communication materials to communicate flood risks and what to do if a flood occurs. The group reviewed academic and non-academic literature on the best ways to communicate risk, the best ways to educate youth, strategies used by other parks to communicate risk, as well as information about the Ellicott City area. The research and final deliverables aim to determine the most effective language for signs within PVSP, and the best education and communication materials to distribute to park visitors. The project began with a client meeting to define expectations for the project. We determined three major aspects: creating safety signage, creating educational materials, and creating a video to be shown at the PVSP mobile ranger station. We also discussed the importance of improving communication with Spanish-speaking visitors. Following this meeting, the group researched flood-risk education, risk communication in parks, risk communication with Spanish speakers, and best practices for park signage. A site visit gave the team a better understanding of the client’s expectations. After this visit, the group divided into three teams; the first team was tasked with editing existing park signs, the second team was tasked with developing educational materials, and the third team was tasked with writing a detailed video script for use throughout the park and at the mobile ranger station. Each team conducted additional relevant research. The result was three deliverables: recommendations and mock-ups of effective safety signage, educational pamphlets that inform park visitors about flooding risks, and a script for an educational video on flooding. We hope this work can contribute to DNR’s goal of providing accessible and appropriate flood communication materials for all park visitors.
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    Community Engagement for Vulnerable Communities: Flooding Impacts and Adaptation in East Riverdale-Beacon Heights
    (Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS), 2019) Delcid, Leslie; Flood, Owen; Grier, Emma; Hastings, Kathryn; Idriss, Baindu; Imhoff, Hannah; Mullen, Haley; Petrik, Skylar; Sikorski, Barbara; Goger, Joanna
    Flood hazards and associated damage are expected to increase in intensity and frequency in the coming years due to increased development and progressing climate change. The severity of these impacts is directly related to the characteristics of drainage basins; severity increases as impervious surface area and development in urban areas increases (USGS, n.d.). Rain events are also set to increase in both intensity and severity as the climate changes in the northeastern United States, leading to an expected 45% increase in the size of the 100-year floodplain by the end of the century (Walsh et al., 2014; Hoegh-Guldberg et al., 2018; Denchak, 2019). Many residents of East Riverdale-Beacon Heights currently live in floodplains; others will likely live in a one-as floodplains increase in size. Additionally, the communities in East Riverdale-Beacon Heights are disproportionately vulnerable to the effects of flooding due to higher than average flooding exposure, and lower than average socioeconomic status and educational attainment. Due to these increased flood risks, this project first evaluated flood risks for the East Riverdale-Beacon Heights communities. GIS analysis revealed that 59 residential units are currently impacted by flooding, and demographic analysis revealed that these residents may be more vulnerable to the effects of flooding, given that a majority (57.2%) of them are Hispanic, more families live below the poverty line than the County average, and the percent of adults without a high school diploma is higher than the County average. To address these findings, multiple flood mitigation strategies were researched and considered. Disregarding financial constraints and considering the vulnerability of the East Riverdale-Beacon Heights community, the best long-term strategy to mitigate flooding impacts was determined to be a buyout program and successful advertisement thereof, using communication strategies detailed in this report. However, if a buyout program is not possible, the most at-risk residents should be urged to either elevate or wet floodproof their homes. Additionally, we recommend that the County continue to acquire areas within the floodplain to use as open space and implement green infrastructure techniques to decrease the magnitude of floods. Green infrastructure recommendations in this report include permeable pavement, downspout disconnection, bioretention, blue roofs, green roofs, and urban tree canopy. These mitigation solutions should not only be adopted by the County but also recommended to citizens in the East Riverdale-Beacon Heights area. The County should continue to use the websites and mailing systems they have in place and update the information to include the findings of this report. Moreover, this project has determined that the best way to communicate this information is through the consistent use of multiple social media platforms and, most importantly, public outreach meetings and events. Outreach events allow the County to make flooding information more accessible and explain more complex information through conversation. In conclusion, Prince George’s County can optimally decrease flood risk for the maximum number of residents, both inside and outside of East Riverdale-Beacon Heights, by implementing as many of these strategies as possible. Using strategies that decrease exposure, hazard, and vulnerability can cohesively and systematically increase flood resiliency for this human-environmental system.