http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/6175 Stefanie Hilles Sun, 05 Apr 2026 16:44:05 GMT 2026-04-05T16:44:05Z http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/7009 A geospatial analysis of the role of lead exposure in substance use disorders. Thach, Chloe This project investigates how the disproportionate exposure to lead (Pb), a hazardous neurotoxin, may result in the development of substance use disorders (SUDs) through a geospatial analysis of: 1. Discriminatory redlining strategies used by the Federal Housing Administration and Homeowners’ Loan Corporation from the 1930s-1960s; 2. Elevated Blood Lead Level (EBLL) maps developed by city and county health departments from 2000-2020; 3. Maps of drug overdose events developed by city and county health departments from 2000-2020. Publicly available data are currently being analyzed using ArcGIS Pro. The objective of this project is to apply the Bradford-Hill criteria for causation to determine whether Pb exposure may cause, or be a factor in, the development of SUDs. While some pre-clinical and population studies have been used to investigate this research question, geospatial analysis evidence considering these three variables are lacking in the literature. Results from this project may be used as evidence for action to hold governmental agencies accountable for providing safe and healthy environments to prevent the development of SUDs, instead of employing downstream combatants of policing efforts. While Pb exposure alone may not cause SUDs, preliminary data suggest that people with EBLLs may be more at risk for SUDs. http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/7009 http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/6864 Beyond the Land Acknowledgement: Indigenous Language Revitalization, Student Activism, and Critical Theory in STEM Librarianship Hilles, Stefanie; Boehme, Ginny Throughout their history, libraries have participated in white supremacist power structures that privilege white knowledge over that of other cultures. While humanities and social science librarians are becoming more active in decolonization efforts, STEM librarians can often feel out of place in these projects. However, STEM librarians are vital to include in these conversations, as STEM disciplines are well known for perpetrating and sustaining white supremacist cultures, especially in the historical over-representation of white men in their professional ranks and publications. One way that STEM librarians can do social justice work and begin to dismantle white supremacist culture is through indigenous language revitalization, which seeks to restore and preserve the languages and cultures of indigenous peoples. Through the lens of critical theory, this presentation will examine one such initiative at Miami University: a case study involving a collaboration between the library, the natural history museum, and a class of first-year student researchers. This class involved the researching and writing of museum labels, and focused on the restoration of an existing botanical exhibit, the "Tree Walk". Aside from ensuring factual accuracy, the students were given wide latitude in the design and creation of the labels. As a group, they decided that the labels should incorporate, alongside the common and scientific names, the names of the trees as used by the Miami tribe, the indigenous peoples native to the lands upon which the university resides. The university has developed a strong relationship with the Miami tribe and together they have created an online dictionary of tribal words. While this dictionary was the project’s starting point, students quickly realized that many of the trees currently on campus are not native to the land and instead come from parts of North America that were home to other indigenous peoples. As this dictionary focuses on one tribal language, it is insufficient for highlighting the biodiversity of the trees on campus and the many different cultures that have traditionally relied upon them. Forced assimilation programs and the subsequent eradication of the languages and cultures of indigenous peoples have severely inhibited the creation of similar dictionaries, thus presenting significant challenges for the project and revealing the lasting effects of white supremacist culture. Using critical theory as a framework for this initiative not only illustrates the power structures that libraries must contend with today in order to be more socially just institutions, it also demonstrates how major gaps in the knowledge of other cultures are a serious impediment to comprehensive and effectual research. Moreover, critical theory, through its emphasis on power and power relationships, requires an acknowledgment of the forced assimilation of indigenous peoples and how language suppression was an effective genocidal tool. Indigenous language revitalization is one way that libraries can fight back. By creating programs, or supporting existing programs, that help revitalize indigenous languages and cultures, STEM librarians can lend their expertise to these vital and necessary undertakings. http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/6864 http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/6863 Creative Deconstruction: Using Zines to Teach the ACRL Framework Hilles, Stefanie Zines not only record the narratives of counter-cultural movements and preserve the voices of marginalized people, their creation and history can also be used to implicitly teach students elements of the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy. This presentation investigates how one-shot zine-making workshops, where students have the opportunity to interact with the library’s zine archive and make their own zines, can support the ACRL concepts that Authority is Constructed and Controlled and Information Has Value by engaging students in creative processes. Attendees will learn why the history of zines makes them an excellent medium for examining these frames as well as specific zine-making assignments and activities they can use in their own libraries. http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/6863 http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/6862 Zine and Be Heard: Engaging Design Students in Social Justice through Zines Hilles, Stefanie http://hdl.handle.net/2374.MIA/6862