Investigating the Spatial Relationship Between Sense of Place and Community-Based Organizations: Do Community-Based Organizations Influence Volunteering in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida?

Sense of place has been used among the literature as a framework for understanding pro-environmental behavior, such as volunteering, and connections to specific areas. It is also noted that sense of place can be fostered through Community-Based Organizations However, there is limited research specific to the Indian River Lagoon (IRL), FL, on the potential influence Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) have on volunteering in the IRL. I examined secondary geographic data collected through the CNH-L: Restoration and Resilience in Coupled Human-Natural Systems: Reciprocal Dynamics of a Coastal \u27Lagoon in Crisis\u27 project funded by the National Science Foundation Grant Award Abstract No. 1617374. The sample includes 1,005 sense of place participant responses from community members, organizations, and citizen scientists of the IRL. I examined the spatial relationship between participants\u27 interest to volunteer relative to twenty selected CBOs to determine if these interests are higher in areas with an environmental community presence (i.e., CBO) in the IRL using the Multiple Ring Buffer Analysis tool in ArcGIS Pro. Out of 1,005 total responses, 731 sense of place points, or 73% of points, were within 10-miles of CBOs in the IRL. A Two-Sample t-Test assuming Unequal Variances and Regression analysis were conducted to compare future volunteering responses, yes or no, within the 10-mile buffer radius. Results indicate that there is not a statistically significant spatial relationship between the participants\u27 interest to volunteer relative to CBO locations. Statistically significant results from the Chi-Square Goodness-of-Fit Test comparing past and future volunteer responses suggest a relationship between past experiences and future interest. Therefore, recommendations for future studies include modifying the survey questions to investigate the participants\u27 motivation to volunteer in addition to integrating the participant\u27s reason for selecting the sense of place location with the analysis to further understand the participants\u27 connection to the area