Department of Human Ecology Content

Culturally Supportive School Environments Contribute to Academic, Emotional, Social Success

Karen Michele Nikos — October 14, 2024 - 10:28am

All students, including those from ethnoracially diverse and from white backgrounds, benefit from supportive learning environments that accommodate adolescents’ multiple cultural and ethnic backgrounds, according to new University of California, Davis, research. These benefits span the academic, social and emotional realms.

Temptation at the Checkout: 70% of Food, Drinks Within Arm’s Reach Are Unhealthy

Karen Michele Nikos — June 07, 2023 - 12:00pm

About the study

Researchers analyzed the checkout lanes in 102 food stores in Davis, Sacramento, Oakland and Berkeley, California.

The study was published in Current Developments in Nutrition.

Citizen Scientists Help �鶹��ý Researchers Spread Native Plant Seeds in Urban Areas

Karen Michele Nikos — November 15, 2022 - 10:15am

Bus stops, bike paths, sidewalks and other spots often overlooked in the community will become areas of beauty — for the sake of science. That’s the idea behind the Seed Pile Project, which asks community members from as far east as Sacramento and as far west as the East Bay to drop a pile of native wildflower seeds near their home or office and monitor the growth.

Global Food Supply-Chain Issues Call for Solutions

Karen Michele Nikos — June 27, 2022 - 8:45am

Global supply issues related to the pandemic and war in Ukraine have highlighted yet another global vulnerability — food availability.

While international trade allows countries to buffer against domestic food shortfalls and gain access to larger markets, what happens when supplies run short, or the global supply chain slows or even breaks down like it did during the pandemic?

Warning Labels Could Help Customers Identify Hidden Sugar in Restaurant Menus

Karen Michele Nikos — June 06, 2022 - 11:00am

Do you really want to order a soda with your burger? Just one soda can have more added sugar than the entire daily limit recommended for most adults.

Seeing a warning icon on a restaurant menu may help consumers identify the high amounts of added sugar hidden in menu items — and it may even convince them to reach for healthier items like water.

How Can We Make Cities Thrive?

Karen Michele Nikos — May 23, 2022 - 9:11am

�鶹��ý Professor Catherine Brinkley talks about how to make cities thrive in the Mindscape Podcast.

Public School Closures Increasing in Cities, but Affected Neighborhoods Differ Regionally

Karen Michele Nikos — October 20, 2021 - 10:00am

A new study from University of California, Davis, looked at the locations of closures in 260 metropolitan areas of the U.S. finding a variety of conditions cause schools to close.

Spreading Native Plant Seeds for the Future of Urban Landscapes

Karen Michele Nikos — September 29, 2021 - 11:30am

There might soon be more native California poppies, lupines and sunflowers popping up along streets and sidewalks in the region.

COVID-19 Taking a Toll on Everyday Lives, �鶹��ý Research Suggests

Karen Michele Nikos — August 24, 2020 - 1:45pm

Rare research on the effects of a pandemic undertaken during an ongoing disaster shows that COVID-19 has severely affected people’s daily emotional lives and mental health, increasing their stresses the longer lockdowns, fear of getting sick and financial strains continue.

Having a lower education level and speaking English as a second language further reduced resilience and hindered people’s ability to cope, suggests new University of California, Davis, research based on surveys that began in April — just a few weeks after lockdowns started in the United States.

How Have Pandemics Historically Changed Cities?

Karen Michele Nikos — May 19, 2020 - 2:10pm

This blog is by Catherine Brinkley, assistant professor of community and regional development.

Reprinted from The Conversation.