16 Peace Justice and Strong Institutions – �鶹��Ƶ

Planning for implementation of a Family Treatment Court

Ada Inman — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 16:02:10 +0000

Shebogyan County is interested in creating a family treatment court to help address the needs of families separated because of parental and caregiver substance use. Graduate public health students researched recommendations for implementing a family treatment court and a curated list of potential funding opportunities for starting and maintaining the program. [...]

Recommending best practices for secure detention of youth

Ada Inman — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 15:55:55 +0000

Psychology students examined Sheboygan County’s juvenile justice system, focusing on the interactions between intake, community-based case management, and secure custody functions. Their report evaluates how effectively these components operate individually and as a system and identifies strengths, challenges, and opportunities for improved outcomes for youth and the community. [...]

Creating onboarding materials for new village trustees

Ada Inman — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:23:27 +0000

To support newly elected officials in the Village of DeForest, a UniverCity Alliance Scholar created an orientation handbook and onboarding materials. The comprehensive guide, which includes information on budgeting, elections, roles, responsibilities, ethics, and more, is designed to provide and empower elected officials with the information needed to thrive in their new role. [...]

Improving pretrial programs in Monroe County

Ada Inman — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 20:40:24 +0000

A pretrial program in Monroe County monitors repeat offenders and refers them to therapy programs through bond monitoring. To reduce recidivism, public health graduate students recommended building and using an extensive referral system and establishing a collaborative behavioral contract. [...]

Evaluating Monroe County’s drug court program, part two

Ada Inman — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 20:18:48 +0000

A second group of psychology students analyzed Monroe County’s drug court program across an additional two priority standards as outlined in the All Rise Adult Treatment Court Best Practice Standards. They interviewed court team staff, current participants, and graduated participants. During a site visit, they collected information through courtroom observations, program documents, and quantitative data [...]

Evaluating Monroe County’s drug court program

Ada Inman — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 20:13:13 +0000

To support Monroe County comply with best practices of completing an outside evaluation at a minimum of every five years, psychology students assessed the county’s drug court program across three priority areas outlined in the All Rise Adult Treatment Court Best Practice Standards. This involved observing court and a graduation, interviewing staff and participants, and evaluating the program across three priority standards. Ultimately, the students created a report that incorporated qualitative interviews, quantitative data, and a review of program documents that will help Monroe County share progress with elected officials, apply for grants, and determine potential changes to make to the drug court program.

The National City Earthquake Safety & Outreach Initiative

Ada Inman — Tue, 06 Jan 2026 16:41:12 +0000

This report contains a series of policy proposals developed by San Diego State University (SDSU) students, in collaboration with National City officials and the SDSU Sage Project, to increase the use of existing earthquake preparedness resources among National City residents. The primary focus of student research was the California Earthquake Brace + Bolt program and encouraging homeowners to engage in seismic retrofitting. Additionally, students developed policy recommendations aimed at increasing general earthquake safety, awareness, and education. Being located in Southern California, earthquake preparedness
is a topic the SDSU community is very familiar with and many students were able to use this as an opportunity to draw upon prior knowledge in their research.
Students worked to create policy suggestions specific to National City, based on methods proven effective in similar municipalities, by researching how the area’s demographics may impact the use of community resources. National City is a heavily Hispanic city, with a large population that does not speak English as a first language. As such, many of the policies in this report focus on bridging that gap in communication and establishing trust between community members and those with access to earthquake preparedness resources. Another major trend among policies developed by students was a focus on finding creative ways to lower the economic burden on residents interested in seismic retrofitting. This led to the creation of several innovative proposals focused on helping residents pay for seismic retrofitting, primarily where other government programs would not suffice. These policies may be more difficult to implement than direct outreach, but they represent an alternate approach the city could take to encourage seismic retrofitting.
The policies presented in this report were chosen for their adaptability as part of a larger earthquake awareness initiative, as well as their ability to function independently. As stressed by National City officials, the city budget does not have any extra funding for extensive earthquake preparedness programs. The purpose behind choosing policies which can operate independently is to work around these constraints and offer solutions that may be more budget-friendly. These policies are categorized based upon the type of actor affected: resident, government group, or external organization.

Mixed-Methods Tools for Program Co-Design, Iteration, and Assessment for a Guaranteed Income Program

Ada Inman — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 22:57:28 +0000

This report is a result of the collaborative partnership between the Black Women’s Resilience Project (BWRP) and the Sage Project at San Diego State University (SDSU). The BWRP, a project sponsored by Jewish Family Service of San Diego (JFSSD), is a guaranteed income (GI) program intended to uplift low-income Black women and their families out of poverty by targeting the challenges they face. Research contained in this report was conducted as part of Dr. Kristen Maher’s Fall 2024 Political Science Seminar in Foundations of Public Policy (POL S 603) class at SDSU. The POL S 603 course focused on the theory and practice of policy-making, which comprises the design, agenda setting, tools, and implementation process. Students who opted to participate were tasked with exploring, researching and evaluating methods for tracking the project’s impact. The aim was gathering participant experiences and assessing the effects of the project. This report provides an overview of mixed-methods research and assessment approaches through a Participatory Action Research (PAR) framework, including a discussion of the affordances and constraints of narrative research, Photovoice, and community mapping methods.

Aging In Place: A Strategy for Updating the General Plan

Ada Inman — Fri, 12 Dec 2025 19:26:22 +0000

The City of Tolleson, located in the West Valley of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, is committed to fostering an inclusive, safe, and affordable community for its more than 7,000 residents and thousands of daily commuter and industry visitors. As the City has reached 90% build-out, and simultaneously the General Plan 2024 has reached its maturity, Tolleson staff and leadership are interested in exploring new opportunities to plan for Tolleson to continue to be a thriving community for people of all ages. To advance these efforts, a team of Master of Urban and Environmental Planning (MUEP) Planning Workshop students will collaborate with the City of Tolleson staff, leadership, and community members through the ASU Project Cities program to explore best practices to plan for aging in place to inform a supplemental General Plan chapter focused on implementing recommended strategies throughout the City now and into the future.

Green Technology and Sustainable Education Conference

Ada Inman — Fri, 12 Dec 2025 18:35:45 +0000

The Green Technology & Sustainable Education Conference at Ajou University Tashkent (AUT), chaired by Professor Dr Che Zalina Zulkifli, is a major regional platform to accelerate green innovation, green university transformation, and sustainable education across Uzbekistan. The conference follows the �鶹��Ƶ Model by connecting university expertise with local environmental authorities, industry partners, and communities to address real, measurable sustainability needs.

Uzbekistan is strengthening its national commitment to environmental protection, green infrastructure, sustainable land use, and climate-resilient education.

AUT aims to serve as a regional driver for sustainable technology and green education. Through Prof Zalina’s leadership, the conference brought together academia, government, community groups, and industries to co-design solutions aligned with �鶹��Ƶ principles of:

community impact
long-term partnerships
scalable solutions
real-world implementation

The conference was designed to:

Accelerate Green University transformation
Strengthen capacity in green technologies, IoT, and smart systems
Support environmental education and sustainability literacy
Enhance university–community partnerships
Link AUT to global and ASEAN networks working on sustainability

The conference was honoured by major international and national keynote leaders:

His Excellency Ilham Tuah

Ambassador of Malaysia to Uzbekistan
Delivered an inspiring keynote on Malaysia–Uzbekistan cooperation in sustainable development, education diplomacy, and future green partnerships.

WWF-Malaysia

Representatives shared insights on:

climate resilience
biodiversity conservation
community-driven environmental solutions
green innovation partnership models

Their presence strengthened international environmental collaboration with Uzbekistan.

MARDI (Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute)

Provided expert perspectives on:

smart agriculture
land sustainability
innovative farming technologies
research opportunities for Uzbekistan–Malaysia collaboration

These keynote contributions elevated the scientific, diplomatic, and technical depth of the conference.

Key Components of the Conference

5.1 Academic & Technical Sessions

Smart environmental monitoring technology
IoT and AI for sustainability
Green campus and green metrics
Smart agriculture & land management
Circular economy and eco-innovation
Environmental education models

5.2 Local Environmental Authorities & Community Partners

Local environmental protection departments
Municipal green development offices
NGOs and eco-community organisations
Youth and student sustainability groups

5.3 Industry & Innovation Partners

Green technology companies showcased:
renewable solutions
low-cost environmental sensors
smart farming tools
waste-to-resource technologies

Role of Professor Dr Che Zalina Zulkifli

As Director of ICGTSS AUT and Conference Chairperson

Developed the conference theme, structure, and academic direction
Coordinated international speakers and keynote leaders
Strengthened partnerships with environmental authorities and industry
Integrated �鶹��Ƶ frameworks into the conference design
Positioned AUT as a Central Asian hub for green technology & smart systems
Ensured high-quality scientific, educational, and community outcomes

�鶹��Ƶ Alignment

Strengthened AUT’s status as a regional leader in green technology
New pathways for international collaboration with Malaysia (government, WWF, MARDI)
Enhanced academic capacity in sustainability and smart systems
Empowered student and faculty contributions to local environmental challenges
Increased opportunities for �鶹��Ƶ aligned future projects across Uzbekistan

⸻

Future Directions

Annual continuation of the AUT Green Conference
Establishment of AUT as a Central Asia �鶹��Ƶ Demonstration Campus
Joint training programs with WWF-Malaysia and MARDI
University–local authority collaboration on green city initiatives
Applied research and community projects on land, water, and biodiversity

This conference reflects the outstanding leadership of
Professor Dr Che Zalina Zulkifli,
whose international work continues to advance green technology, sustainable education, and community-driven innovation across Malaysia, Uzbekistan, ASEAN, and the global �鶹��Ƶ network.