Virtual reality (VR) and immersive learning can be helpful for overcoming some of the distancing and abstraction that students can experience when learning about future climate impacts like sea level rise. But there are few articles discussing practical logistics and pedagogical concerns of teaching and learning with VR. Immersive experiences require resources to create, meaning there will inevitably be inequalities around whose stories are told in this medium. Computing constraints will likely limit the realism and degrees of freedom that users experience even in the most interactive VR experience. Some students, for reasons of health, culture or comfort, may not want to wear a VR headset. Such constraints and considerations create the need for strategies for blending VR with other media in the classroom, in ways that promote critical thinking and formation of connections, rather than engaging with VR in isolation as spectacle. This article describes the experiences of a team of educators with expertise spanning social sciences and learning technology, reflecting on their attempts to address such concerns when designing an in-class activity to utilise VR in the context of a module on climate resilience.
Muscovy Ducks (Cairina moschata) are federally protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Yet in 2010, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service adopted a rule—the Muscovy Duck Control Order—that allows people and agencies to kill a Muscovy Duck across most of the United States, without a federal permit, and without any justification or evidence of harm. The authorization is unlimited and unconditional: it applies wherever and whenever a bird is found. Notably, the agency issued the control order on the same day it reaffirmed the species’ protected status. Despite the breadth of this authorization, the Service concluded that the rule would not require an Environmental Impact Statement under the National Environmental Policy Act. This raises the question: How did the Muscovy Duck Control Order proceed without a rigorous environmental impact assessment? This article examines the administrative record, including the environmental review documents and public comments, together with relevant statutes and regulations. Three key findings emerge. First, the rule’s narrowly defined purpose, to allow control, mirrored the preferred outcome. Second, the constrained range of alternatives excluded nonlethal approaches. Third, the Finding of No Significant Impact was tenuously justified. The Muscovy Duck Control Order provides an instructive case of how environmental review can be limited in practice. Here, environmental review served largely to justify a decision already made, rather than to inform decision-making. Readers will learn how procedural steps may not fully achieve the substantive goal of the National Environmental Policy Act: to produce better environmental decisions.
Marine mammal strandings often generate complex environmental, social, and communicative challenges, particularly when management decisions become subjects of public debate in digital media. This study examined how Facebook users constructed environmental meanings and perceived environmental risks following the offshore disposal of a dead sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) in Viga, Catanduanes, Philippines. Anchored in environmental communication, risk communication, and social constructionist perspectives, the study employed a qualitative descriptive case study using reflexive thematic analysis of 152 Facebook comments posted between April 29 and May 5, 2026. Four interrelated themes emerged: contesting governmental authority and institutional competence; constructing environmental and public health risks through lay ecological knowledge; performing civic trust through digital affirmation of government actions; and interpreting the event through folk-cosmological and symbolic belief systems. The findings demonstrate that environmental risks and institutional legitimacy were actively negotiated through online discourse rather than determined solely by scientific information. Facebook functioned as a participatory communication space where community experiences, cultural values, and environmental knowledge intersected to shape public understanding of the incident. The study contributes to environmental communication scholarship by illustrating how digital public discourse influences environmental governance and highlights the need for transparent, participatory, and culturally responsive risk communication strategies during marine wildlife management and other environmental emergencies in coastal communities.
The availability of clean water is fundamental to sustainable urban development, particularly in tropical cities experiencing rapid population growth and increasing water demand. Although previous studies have examined water demand forecasting or raw water availability independently, integrated feasibility assessments remain limited for medium-sized tropical cities. This study evaluated the feasibility of long-term clean water supply in Kediri City, Indonesia, by integrating population projection, water demand forecasting, water balance analysis, and raw water source assessment through 2043. Population projections were developed using arithmetic, geometric, and least-squares methods, while water balance analysis was employed to compare projected demand with existing water availability. The results indicate that the maximum daily water demand will reach 618.52 L s−1 by 2043, substantially exceeding the current production capacity of Tirta Dhaha Regional Drinking Water Company (228 L s−1). Among the evaluated alternatives, the Brantas River demonstrated the greatest potential as a sustainable raw water source owing to its high discharge capacity. Comparative analysis with the Langat, Conchos, Mekong, and Mahaweli river basins further emphasizes the importance of integrated river basin management through institutional coordination, upstream conservation, and adaptive monitoring. These findings provide a scientific basis for diversifying raw water sources and strengthening long-term water supply planning in medium-sized tropical cities facing increasing urbanization and climate crisis, while future studies should incorporate climate and demographic uncertainties.
Like many other agricultural communities in the rural Midwest, Green County, Wisconsin, has problems with high nitrate levels in private wells. In 2019, Green County leaders navigated a community controversy when a large-scale dairy operation came into the community. With intentional deliberation, a study group developed a number of recommendations for ways the county could respond. One recommendation involved funding a groundwater quality trend data project. The county ultimately funded 7 years of data collection, providing community members with enough data to more clearly understand nitrate level trends. This research was closely connected to educational sessions and the development of an action plan and water quality coalition. Overall, this case study shows the opportunities communities have in intentionally addressing community conflict with deliberative processes, research, and ongoing learning to inform action.
