Graduate students in a communications campaigns course partnered with several different organizations across the Siouxland region to complete six different communication campaigns about different attractions and assets in the Siouxland region.

Students conducted walkability assessments in two rural Woodbury County Communities. Using data from the assessments, students used ArcGIS Online to create a map of each community’s walkability strengths and weaknesses.

A student in the Department of Geographical and Sustainability Sciences assisted the Siouxland District Health Department with this goal by researching and mapping information about radon concentrations at zip code level throughout Woodbury County.

Students from the Geographical and Sustainability Sciences department used GIS to map the sources of the farmers’ market products and locations of their vendors, giving consumers, and market managers - it is a visual understanding of the area over which the local products are sourced. In addition, students researched how the locations of these vendors and the market correspond to food recovery institutions to assist the Farmers’ Market in forming future collaborations.

Students in the Entrepreneurial Management Institute worked with SIMPCO to explore, research, and produce recommendations on ways that SIMPCO could more effectively brand their programs and services to existing and new constituents.

Students in the Journalism and Mass Communications department addressed the need for public education about safe road-sharing and the benefits of active transportation by creating a strategic marketing plan focused on these topics. In addition to creating the marketing plan, students produced materials such as fliers and social media content that SIMPCO, Siouxland District Health Department and the City of Sioux City can use to spread this message to the public.

Students in the School of Urban & Regional Planning developed a model comprehensive plan for the City of Salix that incorporated Smart Growth principles.

Graduate students in the School of Urban & Regional Planning researched the following five greenspace priorities for the City of Sioux City and created recommendations on how best to increase greenspaces downtown: opportunities for adding greenspaces along sidewalks; opportunities and designs for adding a pocket park to the downtown; opportunities for green roofs and rooftop gardens; opportunities for improving soil permeability and restoration in greened areas; and opportunities for linking downtown greenspace to bike trail access points.

Senior engineering students researched existing commercial small-scale wastewater systems for Iowa City and designed a facility for several different kinds of these small systems to be tested for use in Iowa.

The City of Iowa City requested that students in the Entrepreneurial Management Institutes’ Business Consulting Course research what young professionals are looking for in a place to live, create messages that the City and ICAD could use to market the ways in which Iowa City fulfills these criteria, and research the strategies and platforms that the City and ICAD can use to reach young professionals most effectively.

Students in Professor Anita Jung’s studio course collaborated with the City of Iowa City to develop a public art piece for installment in Iowa City. During the course of the class, students broke into groups and prepared proposals for the public art piece, which city staff chose from. Their proposals were informed by meetings with City staff and a guided tour of the possible sites for installment. 

A senior marketing student researched food waste prevention among local businesses in Iowa City and created a communication campaign for promoting local composting and recycling efforts.

Food waste reduction is an important component of sustainability that many local Iowa City businesses are already achieving through composting and recycling strategies. Public support of such practices and the businesses who engage them can contribute to both the local economy and sustainability success.

Students in the Public Health Program completed two projects, both of which focused on increasing awareness and use of safe road-sharing behaviors and bicycling transportation in Iowa City. The first project was focused on the creation of a communications campaign about how sharrows are understood and function as a means for bicyclers and motorists to share the road. The second concerned planning and campaigning for a temporary bike lane that was installed in Iowa City in May 2016.

Students made parklands along the Iowa River the focus of questions that focus on Iowa City's history, and concentrated on environmental justice concerns related to use and misuse of the river. The project resulted in a website with audio and visuals about this history that can be accessed from the parks for use in taking self-guided tours.

Greenhouse gas and energy reduction were identified as two major goals for 2015 in The City of Iowa City’s 2014 Sustainability Report. The City was, then, pursuing several initiatives to achieve those goals, including an agreement with MidAmerican Energy to convert all of Iowa City’s streetlights into LED fixtures. The LED fixtures are expected to last 25 times longer and operate 75 percent more efficiently than incandescent bulbs. A student from the College of Engineering assisted the City with the streetlight conversion process during the Fall 2015 semester.

To help the City of Iowa City continue to foster the benefits of its natural areas, students from the Department of Geographical and Sustainability Sciences conducted two research projects on the ecological services provided by the parks and open spaces in the city. The first project used hedonic pricing to research how the valuation of different kinds of open spaces contribute to the values of detached single-family homes.

Urban and Regional Planning students examined trends of income inequality in the Iowa City metropolitan area and developed a plan identifying income inequality trends in Iowa City, case studies of similar areas, and strategies for supporting affordable housing in the community; poster displaying results and recommendations; and presentation displaying results and recommendations.

Consistent with the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy (INRS), Winneshiek sought to reduce phosphorus and nitrogen pollution from nonpoint sources. To achieve this goal, the County was interested in gaining information about land use and conservation practices in the area.

Students created a marketing plan that presents research conducted on the blufflands than Winneshiek County aims to protect. This marketing plan details not only the research but also provides recommendations for developing and promoting a new friends group for protecting these lands.

Students in the Geographical and Sustainability Sciences program develop a methodology for mapping blufflands using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology.