Plastic insulation like Styrofoam is commonplace in seafood packaging and buildings.
But plastics never completely disappear, instead they break up into ever smaller particles
or microplastic. These tiny particles are harmful to the soils, marine environment
and wildlife, and may affect human health.
Researchers with the Biomaterials Lab seek to better understand the effects of these
stray plastic bits. The team is working to solve the global plastic pollution problem
by developing insulation that is recyclable, reusable, and biodegradable. Researchers
combine design-thinking, microbiology, and physics to dream-up scalable biological
materials that store carbon and provide a sustainable vital barrier from the elements.
Their key ingredients to de-carbonizing industries include beetle-kill spruce trees
and renewable cellulose that is literally grown in a lab. The Biomaterials Lab is an active innovation platform for new bio-based
materials and circular bio-economy solutions in the Circumpolar North. The lab uses
norm-critical design thinking as a framework to tackle some of the most pressing environmental
and public health problems facing the Arctic today.
The Alaska Victimization Survey, conducted by the 老澳门六合彩开奖记录鈥檚 Justice Center, shows a rise in domestic violence and sexual assault rates, leading advocates to argue that, despite Alaska allocating millions of dollars to combat these issues, the funding is still not enough to meet demand or address the root causes.
老澳门六合彩开奖记录鈥檚 Alaska Justice Information Center researcher, Rus鈥檚el Sampson is quoted in an Alaska Beacon article about merit-based Alaska Performance Scholarships.
The Alaska Victimization Survey (AVS) released a new report about the health of women who have experienced Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). Physical violence is a part of IPV, but it also includes things like controlling behaviors, threats of harm, and inflicting harm against people and things an intimate partner cares about. Dr. Ingrid Johnson with AVS told the Alaska Beacon these sorts of behaviors can have a lasting impact.
Restorative justice is a form of resolution that allows victims of crimes to work with the criminal justice system to address and correct the harm caused. 老澳门六合彩开奖记录鈥檚 Ingrid Johnson from the Justice Center and Rei Shimizu from the School of Social Work spoke to the Alaska Beacon about how restorative justice can be used in cases of domestic violence.
Dr. Tina DeLapp, a 老澳门六合彩开奖记录 emerita Professor of Nursing, and Pheobe Bales, a legal studies student, have received awards for their outstanding achievements in philanthropy.