THE INTERACTIVE WATERSHED:
Using Action Research and Geographic Information Tools to Foster Community Participation in Watershed Education

Principal Investigator: Dan Collins

San Miguel Watershed Questionnaire

Thank you for agreeing to participate in this survey. This questionnaire is part of a research project investigating general understanding of and involvement with the San Miguel River watershed. It also provides a snapshot of your attitudes towards technology and its potential for helping to convey information about the watershed.

The questionnaire should not take more than fifteen minutes to complete. All responses will be treated in confidence; you are not required to identify yourself.

Your participation in completing this questionnaire is much appreciated!

If you have any queries about this project/questionnaire you can contact the researcher at this address: dan.collins@asu.edu

Your Name:

E-Mail Address:

1. Gender:

male

female

2. Age:

Drop down box:

3. Is English your first language?:

Yes No

4. Race and ethnicity:

Drop down box:

5. Educational Experience:

Drop down box:

6. Reason for participating in this project (select the most important):

recommended by a friend

interested in environmental issues in general

interested in the San Miguel watershed

interested in alternative educational media

general interest

Other (explain):

7. I have lived in San Miguel County or in the region for:

Drop down box:

8. Do you spend a lot of time in the natural environment?

yes, a lot.

yes, a bit.

occasionally.

rarely.

never.

9. What activities best characterize your time outdoors (check all that apply)?

recreation and/or exercise

professional (e.g., construction worker, surveyor, botanist, painter)

interest or practicing environmental education

Other (explain):

10. Characterize your involvement with the local environment and watershed:

vocal activist for environmental and watershed issues

I'm knowledgeable about environmental and watershed issues and share my views from time to time.

I occasionally participate in activities related to watershed education or awareness.

know little of what's going on outside and plan on keeping it that way.

Other (explain):

 

11. I believe that strong measures are called for to preserve the health of our watershed.

strongly agree

agree

not sure

disagree

strongly disagree

12. Environmental education with an emphasis on watershed issues should be part of the K-12 curriculum.

strongly agree

agree

not sure

disagree

strongly disagree

13. Where should ultimate authority for environmental oversight and watershed management reside?.

Federal Governmental agencies (e.g., Department of Fish and Game, Bureau of Land Management, EPA, etc. etc.)

State agencies (e.g., Colorado Water Conservation Board, Colorado Division of Water Resources, etc.)

County agencies (e.g., San Miguel County Planning Department, SMC Open Space Commission, etc.)

City or Town Regional Planning agencies (e.g., Town of Telluride Regional Plan)

Private citizens (i.e., privately held property should not be under any obligation to comply with external controls.)

14. Consider the following definition: Green politics is a body of political ideas informed by environmentalism aimed at developing a sustainable society. Given this definition, I would support green candidates at the local, state, and federal level over other non-green candidates.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

15. I would be interested in participating in a watershed inventory that provides the basis for a funding application for a longitudinal study of my local watershed.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

16. I have been involved in the past or am currently involved in some aspect of watershed activism, education, or public outreach.

I'm deeply involved.

I am concerned and do what I can.

I occasionally lend my support to watershed issues.

I rarely participate in these kinds of issues.

I never participate in issues related to watershed or environmental education.

 

SECTION TWO: Computer Literacy

Please check/mark the most appropriate answer

17. Are your computer and/or technology skills adequate for what you are being asked to do in this project? (please discuss)

Yes No

18. I can use word processing packages

very easily

quite easily

I need help

with difficulty

I can't use any word processing package

19. Have you ever created a Web page?

yes, by myself

yes, with some help

yes, with a lot of help from someone else

not yet no

20. Do you use e-mail?

yes, a lot.

yes, a bit.

occasionally.

rarely.

never.

21. Have you ever used a real-time chat facility? e.g. ICQ, chat room, Yahoo messenger, virtual classroom etc.

yes

no, but I would like to try (skip to Question 23)

no, not interested. (skip to Question 23)

22. When 'chatting' on-line can you express everything you want to say?

always

mostly

sometimes

rarely.

never.

23. Have you ever used, or participated in, a discussion list , blog, or wiki? (asynchronous)

yes, for both my academic studies and personal use

yes, just for my academic studies

no, but I would like to try

no, not interested.

never.

24. Do you always respond to the messages on a discussion list, blog, or wiki?

always and immediately

always, eventually

sometimes, immediately

sometimes, eventually

never.

25. Does what others post on discussion boards influence how you think about a topic?

a lot

somewhat

very little

not at all

26. I use (click all that apply):

Internet browsers (Internet Explorer, Netscape, Firefox, Safari, etc.)

.pdf documents (e.g., accessed via Adobe Reader, etc)

online libraries or other digital archives (e.g, Wikipedia, Questia, MDID, etc.)

e-books

online databases (e.g, NIST, EBSCO, ESRI, etc)

online maps (e.g., Google maps, Yahoo maps, ArcGIS products, etc.)

27. Do you use search engines? (e.g. Google, AltaVista, etc.)

a lot

some

occasionally

not at all (Skip to question 29)

28. What has been your main reason for using a search engine?

research for private interest

research for studies

finding contact information for services

finding contact information for individuals

other (please discuss)

29. How successful do you think you are at finding the info you need on-line?

very successful

quite successful

average

not very successful

a complete failure!

30. How much time do you spend on-line?

I am always on line.

2 or more hours a day (on average)

once every day or so (to check email for example)

no more than once a week

never.

 

SECTION THREE: Map Reading
Please check/mark the most appropriate answer. Section 3 of the questionnaire asks participants whether they agree with statements about the use of maps and geographic interfaces, particularly the online 3D graphic interface provided for the Telluride region.

31. I have used maps to better understand my immediate environment

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

32. I value maps principally as aids to orientation and navigation.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

33. In general, maps are the most reliable representations of geographic information or descriptions of "place."

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

34. A useful map would always include accurate geo-referenced markers.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

35. Maps require contextual information and careful labeling in order to be useful.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

36. Maps that are tied to particular stories are more effective in conveying the "meaning of a place."

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

37. Subjective impressions of place are difficult to convey through a conventional mapping process.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

38. Maps delivered via stand-alone computers or the Internet are useful adjuncts to the geographical information available from tangible 2D maps.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

39. I have used maps to better understand the relationship of my home or office to the landscape or regional environment.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

40. I have used maps to teach about a subject or persuade another person about the facts concerning a particular place.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

41. When using a computer, it is important to be able to orient the map from 2D "birds-eye" view and 3D views.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

42. It is important to be able to scale the map from global views to views that show the details of the local landscape.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

43. Having a map available through a standard internet browser (i.e., Internet Explorer) rather than in conventional mapping products increases the likelihood that I would contribute to the development of a database on watershed.

strongly agree.

agree.

not sure.

disagree.

strongly disagree.

44. How do you feel about using maps found on-line?

I love on-line maps and look at them all the time

maps on-line are good and I occasionally use them

I have no strong feeling one way or another

I don't really like on-line maps .

I hate looking at maps on-line

45. If I could choose the ?metaphor? that would best capture my interest with respect to a particular on-line map experience it would be:

Zooming in from an all seeing point of view.

organized around historical stories of place

developed as a site for sharing current events in the region

developed as a gaming experience with fly-throughs, a reward structure, and opportunities for competition.

Other (please discuss)

 

 


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