POSTER PRESENTATIONS

The conference featured two poster sessions.  The first highlighted IGERT programs; the second students’ research projects.

SESSION I – IGERT PROGRAMS
(alphabetical by school)

Arizona State University – Urban Ecology: Integrating Towards Sustainability
Kate J. Darby and Thad Miller
[to view the poster, click here]

Now in its second funding cycle, Arizona State University’s IGERT in Urban Ecology strives to provide graduate students with an opportunity to conduct collaborative and integrative work in the living urban laboratory of Phoenix, Arizona. The theme of urban ecology requires that social scientists, natural scientists and engineers learn to speak each other’s languages by understanding underlying assumptions, theoretical perspectives and methodologies. To tackle research questions related to sustainability, the substantive integration and collaboration this IGERT encourages is necessary. Participating students’ research reflects these integrative and collaborative goals. Equipped with a unique set of skills, and as a result of the IGERT’s association with Arizona State University’s Global Institute of Sustainability, IGERT students are increasingly addressing sustainability research questions. This poster presents the research projects of past and current IGERT students to demonstrate the program’s emphasis on adaptive learning, integration and collaboration and an increasing tendency toward sustainability-related research questions.

Carnegie Mellon University – Computational Analysis of Social and Organizational Systems (CASOS)
[to view the poster, click here]

In the past decade the computational social sciences (e.g., computational organization theory) and the social computer sciences (e.g., multi-agent systems) have emerged. This has resulted in a unified perspective on groups, organizations, institutions and societies as intelligent adaptive agents composed of networks of socially-embedded, intelligent and adaptive agents that can be reasoned about, and supported by, computationally and socially sophisticated models and agents. The CASOS program will prepare students for this field by teaching them how to use computers to understand the complexities of human behavior and how to use knowledge of humans as social actors to improve computational agents. Program features include: integrated social and computer science curriculum; studio courses emphasizing real-world corporate concerns, model design, implementation and validation; mentoring program; research practicum, proposal competition; distance learning; and integrated summer workshop and conference. Classes and research will take place in the classroom/office of the future -- a distributed intelligent space where people have ubiquitous access to and can provide/receive information wherever, whenever and to/from whomever they want in an unbounded network of agents (human, webbots, robots, corporations, etc.); thus, reducing classroom/research barriers, enabling real-time computational analysis, data collection, and model validation, and increasing interaction with faculty and students at other institutions.

Columbia University – International Development and Globalization Program
[to view the poster, click here]

Columbia University’s IGERT International Development and Globalization Program is grounded intellectually in a critique and reformulation of standard economic theory.  Globalization – the integration of nations and regions through the flows of people, goods, capital, and ideas – has far-reaching potential for spurring economic development. Paradoxically, in many developing countries, globalization has been associated with increasing poverty, inequality, and concomitant political and social turmoil, inevitably affecting the US and other developed countries. Debates on development strategies are often confined to a narrow range of options; one of the goals of this program is to investigate why, and to provide a deeper understanding of the impact of globalization on developing countries. This requires models that systematically incorporate the social and political institutions that can modify the impact of markets, as well as the geographic and environmental factors that can shape the course of development. To that end, the program is organized around six research cores: global institutions and the international architecture; role of the state, politics, and civic engagement; poverty and social development; global and local networks; geography and environment; and macroeconomic policy and political economy. Directed by Professor Joseph Stiglitz, the program draws faculty and students from across the social sciences at Columbia, including the departments of economics, political science, sociology, urban planning, socio-medical sciences, communications, and sustainable development.

Cornell University – Biogeochemistry and Environmental Biocomplexity (BEB)
Marissa Weiss
[to view the poster, click here]

The Cornell IGERT in Biogeochemistry and Environmental Biocomplexity (BEB) is broadly focused on increasing understanding of human-accelerated environmental change in a complex environment.  Research topics of participants include increased eutrophication of surface waters, acidification of streams and lakes and forest die-back from atmospheric deposition, loss of biotic diversity from accelerated element cycling and invasive species, and global changes in the cycling of atmospheric greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrogen compounds.  The program is comprised of faculty and graduate students from 10 departments on the Cornell campus, as well as scientific staff from the Institute for Ecosystem Studies, in Millbrook, NY.
While faculty create the overarching structure for the Cornell BEB program, much of the programming is student-led.  Students organize a weekly biogeochemistry seminar series, annual retreat, workshops and short courses, a graduate student association, and students serve as reviewers for a “small grants” competition for research funds.
The Cornell BEB IGERT implicitly addresses sustainability, and most participants self-identify as doing sustainability related research and/or outreach.  Participants in the program are striving to more formally develop this sustainability component.  Cornell University recently unveiled a campus-wide Sustainability Initiative, which will provide a forum for the Cornell BEB IGERT community to explicitly focus on sustainability in the immediate future.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology IGERT Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies (ISN)

Laurel Braitman
[to view the poster, click here]

Nanotechnology and the Soldier of the Future:  In 2002, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology signed a five-year, fifty-million dollar contract with the United States Army and the Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies (ISN) was born. An interdepartmental research center at MIT, its mission is to use nanotechnology (the purposeful manipulation of matter at the nanoscale) to dramatically improve the survival of soldiers. The ultimate goal of the institute is the creation of a battlesuit for the 21st century soldier. The suit is envisioned to be bulletproof, as thin and flexible as spandex, able to monitor the vital signs-- such as pulse and temperature--of the soldier wearing it, and able to interact intimately with the soldier’s own body, recognizing chemical and biological weapons and then responding, able to transmit antidotes through the skin of the wounded soldier via ultrasound.
The ISN’s mandate is remarkably ambitious. And it is unfolding in a void of regulation and standardized systems for determining the potential public health and ecological risks of nanomaterials and nanomanufacturing. My research interests revolve around nanoscience and nanoengineering as emerging disciplines and how the practitioners of these new technologies are defining themselves and their work and responding to potential risks and the lack of preexisting regulation. Is it reasonable to assume that we can track, appraise and understand potential harms of technological innovation on the molecular scale before monitoring capabilities even exist? How do we evaluate potential benefits of new naotechnologies before such risks are appraised? And finally, how has the process of nanotechnology knowledge-gathering and risk appraisal been different from that of other emergent technologies like synthetic biology or genetic engineering?

Michigan Technological University and Southern University – Sustainable Futures IGERT

[to view the poster, click here]

It is the mission of universities to prepare students to meet the needs of an increasingly complex society, which is demanding governments, corporations, and other organizations to act in a sustainable manner.  Discussions of sustainability among those from various fields of learning often highlight fundamental disciplinary differences in attitudes towards societal issues, environmental concerns, and industrial activities, rather than promoting convergence towards agreement.  To harmonize the views and attitudes of disparate fields across campus, establish a common working language, and nurture the development of a science base in support of sustainability, a group of faculty and students at Michigan Technological University formed the Sustainable Futures Institute (SFI) in 2003. The SFI educational, research, and outreach activities focus on the policy and technology aspects of sustainability.
As part of an effort to nurture the development of a science base that supports the metadisciplinary field of sustainability, shortly after the formation of the SFI, a proposal was submitted to and ultimately approved by the NSF-IGERT program.  The Sustainable Futures (SF) IGERT is a partnership between engineering programs at Michigan Technological University (MTU) and the public policy program at Southern University in Baton Rouge (SUBR).  The key research, educational, and training components of the SF IGERT project are described.  Research projects are inherently interdisciplinary.  Education and training features include sustainability courses, colloquia, international experience, internships, and a semester-long exchange to the university partner.  The benefits and challenges derived from the development and implementation of the project at MTU and SUBR are also discussed.

Scripps Institute of Oceanography/UC San Diego – Marine Biodiversity IGERT

[to view the poster, click here]

The Marine Biodiversity IGERT builds upon excellence in studies of global change and the marine environment at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. With expertise from our partners in economics, political science, international relations, computer science, and communication, our goal is to improve conservation of marine biodiversity in the world's most diverse and threatened eco-regions.  Our approaches include economic analyses, archaeological studies, modeling techniques, and traditional field studies. Through research, training and global partnerships, the Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation mobilizes local capacity building and science-based management tools to achieve a sustainable future for the world's oceans.

SUNY Buffalo – Geographic Information Science

Joseph Holler
[to view the poster, click here]

The SUNY Buffalo IGERT program focuses on geographic information science, bringing together departments as diverse as philosophy, civil & environmental engineering, anthropology, computer science, geology and geography.  Geographic information science involves the study of geographic information systems design and application, impact of geographic information science upon society, ontology of geographic spaces and information, and participatory geographic information systems.  Students have implemented and used GISystems to research sustainability issues as diverse as the efficiency of urban forms, forest management, stream and watershed restoration, and community-based participatory resource management.
My first year and a half of PhD studies are coalescing into a focused dissertation topic.  The problem of interest is community-based management of natural resources, particularly fresh water.  For most of the developing world, access to fresh water continues to hinder development, perpetuate water-borne disease and amplify gender and income gaps.  The functioning of the hydrological cycle is increasingly strained by land cover change, land degradation, population growth, climate change, pollution, and over-abstraction of water.  This in turn increases pressure on international and intra-national conflicts over water access.
I posit that participatory geographic information systems, designed in a community-based problem-oriented way, can increase communities’ capacity to manage freshwater resources in a sustainable fashion.  A community would participate in an iterative process of designing a geographic information system, populating it with data (both local and scientific), and collaborating with neighboring communities, regional and national administration.  Doing so, community will gain awareness of natural resource issues affecting their livelihoods, social capital to connect with other communities and administration to solve problems and negotiate conflicts, and power to bring scientific data and high-quality maps as evidence to policy-makers and conflict mediators.

University of California Davis – Collaborative interdisciplinary research on biological invasions

Clare E. Aslan and Matthew B. Hufford
[to view the poster, click here]

Unprecedented rates of biological invasions have created unique environmental, economic, and social challenges.  They epitomize the rapidly growing array of environmental challenges that no single discipline, individual, or constituency can solve: effective management of biological invasions must include outreach to the public and collaboration among academics, government agencies, and stakeholder groups.  Second-year students in the Biological Invasions IGERT at UC Davis design and carry out intensive year-long projects.  These projects, designed by students, typically include academic researchers, agency personnel, non-profit organizations, and members of the public to study the multi-factorial problems associates with biological invasions.  The nature of specific projects has varied with the interests and experience of the students involved.  They have included a film on environmental conflict between residents of the town of Portola, California and state agencies over the removal of northern pike from Lake Davis; an investigation of the role of the aquarium and horticultural trades in establishment of invasive species; a study of rancher response to the invasion of yellow starthistle in the Sierra Nevada foothills; and development of an interdisciplinary educational module that introduces high school students to issues surrounding invasive species.  Projects culminate in a workshop symposium organized by students in which they discuss their results with multiple stakeholders and academics.  Our program gives students a strong foundation for innovative research careers in a world in which traditional disciplinary boundaries increasingly are transcended.

University of California Santa Barbara – Economics and Environmental Science (EES)

Corbett Grainger
[to view the poster, click here]

The Economics and Environmental Science (EES) program at University of California, Santa Barbara aims to produce environmental economists with a deep and expert knowledge of economics and a relevant and substantive understanding and appreciation of the natural science that underlies their economics research.  UCSB is known as a center of environmental economics, and students in the EES IGERT have undertaken research addressing a variety of issues related to sustainability.  Examples of research by students and faculty in the program cover a variety of environmental and economic problems:  fisheries and management under uncertainty; information flows within fisheries; game-theoretic analysis of fishing cooperatives; the incidence of environmental regulations; quantifying the impact of climate change on agriculture; analysis of invasive species and policy; and analyzing alternative approaches to species conservation, such as conservation banking.  This poster introduces the EES program and highlights the research undertaken by some of its students.

University of Colorado at Boulder – Optical Science and Engineering Program (OSEP)

Kathrine Gerth
[to view the poster, click here]

The Optical Science and Engineering Program (OSEP) is an exciting interdisciplinary graduate program at the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU) designed to meet the demand for individuals who have a thorough familiarity with optics and combined with graduate training in Chemistry/Biochemistry, Physics, or Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Students who complete this intensive program will graduate with both a PhD degree from one of the participating departments and a Certificate in Optics.  Training highlights include: four optics courses to complement their home department course requirements (one of these courses must be the Advanced Optics Laboratory); three optics laboratory rotations, a weekly optics seminar, a three-month industrial internship, mini-courses in electronics, machine techniques, business, ethics, technical writing, and public speaking; support to attend an optics conference during the first two years; and support to perform the industrial internship or laboratory rotation abroad.  Research projects span all three depart-ments as well as surrounding national laboratories including the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the National Renewable Energies Laboratory (NREL).  In addition, CU offers another certificate program for graduate students in the sciences through the Center for Science and Technology Policy Research.

University of Delaware – Sustainable Energy from Solar Hydrogen

[to view the poster, click here]

The NSF-sponsored Sustainable Energy from Solar Hydrogen IGERT program at the University of Delaware focuses on developing new approaches to sustainable energy which is based on the conversion of solar energy using hydrogen as an energy carrier.  We want our students to recognize and develop new multidisciplinary approaches to solar hydrogen components, systems, and implementation.
The program draws students and faculty from Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Chemistry, Physics, and Economics and Policy.  Each student will have a research focus in one area but the background, knowledge, and skills to draw from and interact with colleagues from multiple technical disciplines and ultimately aim to contribute to the broader context of sustainable energy systems.
The program provides future graduate students with the opportunity to venture into a wide range of research endeavors.  There are numerous areas of research for potential graduates to focus on; photovoltaics, fuel cells, catalytic processes in fuel cells and fuel reforming, hydrogen storage and energy policy and economics.
The combination of using solar-based energy generation and hydrogen as an energy carrier and storage offers a sustainable solution to many aspects of the energy issues, including transport and electricity generation.  The goal of the IGERT on Solar Hydrogen and Sustainable Energy is to provide the resources and opportunities for graduate students to address the scientific, technological, and policy challenges in solar hydrogen systems.
We hope that our new graduate student course will enable the students to realize that by working together in interdisciplinary teams, their graduate experience will be vastly improved.

University of Florida – Adaptive Management: Water, Wetlands & Watersheds (AMW3)
Pricope, N., Blanchard, B., Brown, M., Ghaughan, A., Pawlitz, R., and Rajvanshi, N.
[to view the poster, click here]

Challenges of Implementing Adaptive Watershed Management: Five Case Studies of Translating Science into Policy Tools: The Water Resources Development Act of 2000 provided funding for an Adaptive Assessment and Monitoring Program to integrate adaptive management in the implement-tation of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) in Florida’s most altered watershed. Principles of adaptive management and governance had previously been implemented by a regional planning council for the Columbia River Basin and were subsequently adopted to various degrees in other environmentally-sensitive watersheds across the world, while in others their implementation remains in the planning stage. This study presents a comparative analysis of the different stages of implementation of adaptive management in five watersheds: the Apalachicola, Columbia, and Everglades basins in North America and the Okavango and Zambezi transboundary basins in Southern Africa. The main objective is to assess the means by which the experimental approach of adaptive management can be integrated with policy tools to achieve sustainable river flows in regulated systems. Key governmental and non-govern-mental organizations involved in the scientific assessment and management of each basin, together with the relevant policies and legislation, will be incorporated in determining the type of scientific experimentation occurring and the role of science in informing policy. Finally, the importance of experimentation in driving specific policy formulations and integrated watershed-scale management will be evaluated in comparison with other policy drivers in order to understand past changes and make future recommendations.

University of Florida – Working Forests in the Tropics
D. Zarin, R. Buschbacher, S. Jacobson, K. Kainer, F. Putz, M. Schmink, J.R. Stepp
[to view the poster, click here]

Integrating research and applied conservation and development in the neo-tropics: Interdisciplinary skills and knowledge are required to address issues related to the use and conservation of tropical forests that do not enjoy fully protected-area status (“working forests”).  The Working Forests in the Tropics IGERT builds on strengths at the University of Florida in a cutting edge program that can serve as a model for how doctoral research and training can effectively and ethically contribute to solving critical problems facing tropical working forests.  Our research goals are to (1) analyze tradeoffs and complement-tarities among working forest options; (2) clarify how biophysical, social, economic and political constraints and their interactions influence the effectiveness of different kinds of working forests for conservation and development; and (3) measure the impacts of capacity-building interventions designed to improve forest management and promote conservation.  Our methods are integrative across a wide range of disciplines and explicitly comparative across four tropical forest regions (Lowland Bolivia; Acre, Brazil; Eastern Amazonia, Brazil; and the tri-national Maya Forest).  Our training program includes cross-disciplinary and integrative course requirements, and complementary learning/teaching opportunities, including site visits within the four regions, conferences, retreats and workshops, internships, service as mentors, and sharing research results with stakeholders.  This IGERT:  (1) fosters research that is more responsive to real world problems due to interdisciplinary training and strong partner linkages; (2) provides a better match between knowledge and skills developed by graduates and job market demands; and (3) develops a network of effective leaders, trained for the challenges of conservation and intensified use of tropical working forests.

University of Idaho – Ecosystem Management in Tropical & Temperate Regions

S. Donovan, C. Looney, Y. Sánchez-de León, T. Hanson, T.D. Hatten, J.D. Wulfhorst, S.D. Eigenbrode, J. Johnson-Maynard, M. Jennings, and N.A. Bosque-Pérez
[to view the poster, click here]

Using interdisciplinary research to reconcile social and biological needs in an endangered ecosystem:

the Palouse as a model: The University of Idaho IGERT project educates professionals from an interdisciplinary perspective in order to tackle complex issues associated with promoting sustainable agricultural and forest production while conserving biological diversity.  Students in the project conduct research as members of interdisciplinary teams.  One of the teams conducted research in the Palouse, a cultural landscape dominated by agricultural fields, situated in northwestern Idaho and southeastern Washington.  Due to expanding agriculture and urban development, less than one percent of the native Palouse prairie remains intact.  No land use policies are currently aimed at protecting the remaining prairie remnants, even when they face continued threats from development, grazing, and invasive species.  Although interest in conserving the native Palouse ecosystem has increased, little systematic assessment of attitudes and perceptions among landowners and stakeholders have been done prior to this study.  The team developed conservation options for the Palouse aimed at balancing stakeholder values with biological conservation needs.  Using Geographic Information Systems, the team identified points of convergence between biological and social areas of importance.  Resulting maps are being used to: 1. Document areas of high native biological diversity, and determine how  these are affected by landscape context; 2. Discover if spatial overlaps exist between areas of high native biological diversity and stakeholders’ perceptions of their landscape; 3. Provide a flexible tool that can be used by stakeholders and  regional planners to explore and interpret regional landscapes; and 4. Develop a framework for conservation planning in fragmented landscapes using the Palouse as a case study.

University of Illinois at Chicago – Landscape, Ecological, and Anthropogenic Processes (LEAP)
 Michael Iversen
[to view the poster, click here]

LEAP seeks to integrate a variety of scientific fields with relevant economic and social science disciplines to prepare students for careers in environmental science, policy, and conservation practice. With a focus on ecological and evolutionary processes in integrated human / natural landscapes, our students will develop new approaches to maintaining habitats and conserving biodiversity amidst human activities. Our training program includes a multidisciplinary curriculum designed for LEAP students, collaborative research and a team-based capstone project.
                Four new courses have been developed for LEAP students. These courses represent the core curriculum and provide students with an understanding of how scientists, engineers, policy makers and managers approach issues and provide the tools to define problems, gather information and analyze data. The final course allows students to apply these principles and tools in a team research-based capstone project. For the remainder of their graduate program, students will choose from additional elective courses depending on their individual research interests and goals. Students may select courses within their disciplines or may choose from a broad range of multidisciplinary graduate courses in environmental science.
                Faculty are drawn from a number of different departments and colleges, thus providing a multidisciplinary approach to study.
                Internships are a key element of LEAP. Students will participate in an internship with a LEAP partner institution, with the goal of identifying a dissertation project integrating their academic research interests with a “real-world” problem important to the partner. Integral to LEAP is the participation of Chicago area partners, including the Chicago Botanic Gardens, The Field Museum, the Chicago District of the Army Corps of Engineers, Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, the Morton Arboretum, the USDA Forest Service, and Chicago Wilderness.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill – Population and Environment

[to view the poster, click here]

The IGERT training program in population and environment, housed at the Carolina Population Center (CPC) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) is in its fourth year. While the IGERT program in Population and Environment is based at the CPC, it also involves collaboration with UNC's Curriculum in Ecology and Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences. With a focus on land use and land cover change, the program builds on a firm base in a discipline (Ph.D.s are in a discipline or curriculum), adding coursework in complementary disciplines (population science for natural scientists; natural and spatial science for population scholars) and interdisciplinary training and research experiences.  Scientists with a strong disciplinary base, but with training in multiple perspectives, will be ideally placed to bridge social, natural, and spatial science in research on population-environment interactions. Regular meetings with project members from all disciplines, as well as ongoing small-scale collaborations, provide multiple opportunities for IGERT trainees and senior researchers to develop skills at cross-disciplinary communication.  CPC's IGERT training program is international in focus, with particular attention to population and land use in developing countries, specifically Bangladesh, Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands, Panama, the Philippines, Tanzania, Thailand, and Vietnam.

University of Pittsburgh - Mascaro Sustainability Initiative (MSI)

[to view the poster, click here]

The Mascaro Sustainability Initiative (MSI) graduate programs in sustainable engineering catalyze and encourage multi-disciplinary and collaborative research to tackle the broad topic of sustainable engineering.  Research conducted under the auspices of MSI includes projects on greening the built environment, more sustainable use of water, and the design of distributed power systems. Dwindling natural resources mean that engineers of the 21st century, more than ever before, must be conscious of environmental constraints. To help train the next generation of engineers to think green, MSI has created a Sustainable Engineering Fellowship Program through support from the NSF: Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) program (NSF Grant No. DGE-0504345) and the U.S. Department of Education's Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN) program.
Engineers must understand that the world is a finite place with finite resources, and next generation products and processes must be designed within the framework of this complex system. This program engages a diverse and talented group of students to translate the fundamental science of sustainability into real products and processes. Currently, MSI has five IGERT fellows pursuing research in different areas of sustainability. The fellows are exploring sustainable energy sources, alternative materials for plastics and PVC, as well as indigenous natural construction materials as a basis for local-rural based sustainable development. To promote the cross-cultural skills needed to address the global issues of sustainability, our IGERT program offers students the opportunity to conduct 8-month international research rotations in São Paulo, Brazil through a partnership with the University of Campinas.

University of Rhode Island – Coastal Institute

Stephanie Koch and Anna Pfeiffer-Herbert
[to view the poster, click here]

Assessing Change in Coastal Ecosystems:  Integrating Natural and Social Sciences: The Coastal Institute IGERT Project (CIIP) has developed an integrated, multidisciplinary graduate curriculum which enriches the education of students who show potential for leadership in solving environmental problems in coastal ecosystems.  CIIP expands doctoral student training by forging concrete linkages in the traditionally disparate disciplines in the natural sciences (biology, ecology, fisheries, natural resources science) and social sciences (economics, governance, planning, coastal policy) to form a coherent, multidisciplinary framework for coastal research.  Working closely with each other and with non-academic partner institutions, trainees from the natural and social sciences become competent in developing, implementing and monitoring programs and policies that promote the vitality of coastal regions.  Trainees learn to anticipate and negotiate points of conflict among environmental, social, and economic perspectives on issues of coastal science and management.  Humanities scholars provide trainees with tools and perspectives that draw from the spheres of ethics, cultural values and social equity which are fundamental to bridging science and public policy in practice.  CIIP responds to the urgent need for practical integration of multiple disciplines with a pedagogy based upon three core principles: (1) integration of science and policy is effectively accomplished in a bottom-up, trainee-driven setting; (2) experiential learning in the natural and social sciences is the most effective way to show trainees how each system works and expose them to actual and potential mechanisms of integration and; (3) the humanities, especially philosophy and communication studies, prepare trainees to confront ethical and cultural issues which are omnipresent in coastal science and management. 

University of Texas at Austin - Computational Phylogenetics and Applications to Biology

[to view the poster, click here]

Phylogenetic information is critical to interpreting all biological systems. The Computational Phylogenetics and Applications to Biology IGERT program at the University of Texas at Austin develops and improves upon an existing history of on-campus interaction between computational and biological scientists in phylogenetics, which has led to significant changes in the ways biologists design and select tools to analyze their data. The IGERT program at the University of Texas brings together biologists and computer scientists in a program designed to foster interactions and collaborations between the two groups. These interactions are leading to development of new phylogenetic methods and models as well as applications of those innovations throughout biology. The major goals of this IGERT are to (a) design and implement an interdisciplinary training curriculum in the computational and biological sciences that prepares graduate students to understand and contribute to both sides of computational biology, (b) stimulate interdisciplinary graduate research and interdisciplinary interactions in general between computational scientists and biological scientists that will lead to development and testing of novel approaches to unsolved problems in phylogenetics and their application to problems in biology and (c) prepare trainees for careers beyond graduate school and help them achieve visibility in the larger research community. Although sustainability is not the primary focus of this IGERT research program, phylogenetic tools can be applied to many areas related to sustainability. For example, molecular techniques under development at the University of Texas, are allowing for extremely rapid and inexpensive biodiversity inventories, which can aid conservation planning.

University of Washington – Multinational Collaborations on Challenges to the Environment
[to view the poster, click here]

Complex environmental problems cross disciplinary, cultural and national borders. The goal of the University of Washington’s NSF – IGERT on Multinational Collaborations on Challenges to the Environment (UW-MCCE) is to train graduate students to address these challenges using a three-fold strategy.  First, we educate doctoral students on the theoretical concepts related to inter- and trans-disciplinarity as well as engage in readings and classroom discussions to develop a means of thinking and communicating across divergent academic disciplines.  Second, we provide opportunities for international and place-based learning to enable students to engage directly with a diversity of people and institutions who share the responsibility for identifying and solving environmental problems; and third, to develop the skills to effectively communicate as environmental researchers, we encourage pedagogical development via intra-cohort leadership and independent educational internships. Our poster illustrates the various components of our multifaceted model and demonstrates how the UW-MCCE provides a unique and effective means of training graduate student in interdisciplinary, international environmental research.

University of Wisconsin – Multinational Collaborations on Challenges to the Environment
Amanda Henck, Chen Ru, Ge Fengqiong, Jian Diajun, Andrew Scanlon, Wang Yan, Yang Qingxia, and Zhu Zhongfu; Jiang Lijun, Tang Mingkun, Zeng Tao, Zhang Cong, and Zeng Zongyong; Lv Hongliang and Li Yongqiang; Luo Yang; Cheng Gang, Hu Xin Xin, Li Jing, Liao Xun, Qiao Xue, Yi Cheng Bo, and Tang Ya; Sara Breslow, Barbara Grub, and James Taylor; Yuan Yaowu and Richard Olmstead; Julie Combs, Ma Ziya, Alicia Robbins, Lauren Urgenson, and Thomas Hinckley; Sarah Widder, and Andrea Elliott
[to view the poster, click here]

Using interdisciplinary methods to understand Jiuzhaigou terracettes: Jiuzhaigou National Park is a premier national park located in Northern Sichuan Province, China.  Its 720 km2 encompasses an entire watershed with 3000 meters of relief.  In determining how to best manage the park to maintain its cultural and biophysical resources for future generations, we need to understand the dynamics of human-landscape interactions in the watershed.  One example is the formation of irregular terraces on loess hill slopes near villages throughout the region.  Although local people believe that the terraces form naturally, the coincidence between villages and terraces implies an anthropogenic role in terrace formation.  During a June, 2007 field trip, an interdisciplinary team of geologists, archaeologists, anthropologists and ecologists conducted preliminary research on the nature and formation of these terraces.  The terraces are likely formed in areas initially logged and burned and then put on a cycle of burn, crop, pasture, shrub, burn, etc.  Once tree roots were gone the loess soil lost cohesion and slumped.  The slumps then retreat upslope and form terraces up to 40 meters tall.  Not only is understanding terrace formation important for understanding the park environment, but the human-landscape dynamics that created the terraces mean that these are ideal locations to look for early human habitation in the park.  Unraveling this background proved important for stating the ecological and cultural roles of these terraces.

SESSION II – STUDENT PROJECTS
(Alphabetical by primary author’s last name)

Strange bedfellows: the effect of urban plant introductions on bird-plant mutualisms
Clare Aslan and Marcel Rejmánek, Section of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, CA  95616
[to view the poster, click here]

Bird-dispersed plants have a high probability of forming new mutualisms with avian communities after introduction to unfamiliar regions.  Such relationships may dictate the invasive potential of the plants through dispersal dynamics and may transform habitats and behaviors of resident birds. I examine bird visitation and feeding preferences with three nonnative plant species widely introduced to central California:  European olive (Olea europaea), Chinese tallow (Sapium sebiferum), and glossy privet (Ligustrum lucidum).  All are invasive elsewhere but show only limited invasiveness in California.  Esophagal probes were used to assess gape width limitations to dispersal of olives and reveal enhanced dispersal potential for small-fruited olive populations.  A questionnaire distributed to ornithologists provides qualitative records of a wide range of interactions between birds and introduced plants, indicating that plant introductions alter bird habitats and may affect bird behavior and reserve function.  Additional quantitative assessments of bird use of nonnative plants in both field and aviary settings are ongoing.

Tarangire National Park, Tanzania
Tim Baird, University of North Carolina
[to view the poster, click here]

During the past 20 years, land-use outside Tarangire National Park in northern Tanzania has changed dramatically.  Driven by population increase, environmental variability, and land-use restrictions, indigenous groups, including the Maasai, now farm to mitigate the risks associated with strict herding.  This situation threatens both the integrity of the Tarangire ecosystem and the economic viability of nearby households.  Alienation from natural resources in the park has increased Maasai exposure to risks associated with their livelihoods. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect that the park has on local indigenous perceptions of risk and how these perceptions inform behavioral responses.   Data were collected through household surveys (n=116) and Participatory Risk Mapping (PRM) (n=240) in 8 villages east of Tarangire National Park in 2004-05.   By identifying and rank-ordering respondents’ perceived risks, PRM enhances understanding of the nature and variation of risks faced within a population by distinguishing between the incidence and severity of subjective risk perceptions.   Standard survey techniques were used to collect economic, demographic and behavioral response information.   In addition to PRM, simple multivariate statistics are utilized to examine the effects of household size, wealth, wealth composition, and village location on risk perception.   Results indicate that proximity to the park has a strong effect on the type and severity of perceived risks.   Within villages close to the park, however, behavioral response to perceived risks varies considerably.   This study sheds light on how behavioral response to environmental and socio-economic factors is mediated through human perception.

Modeling contagious disease Virginia Bedford, Carnegie Mellon University

“BioWar” is a multi-agent, city-scale model that incorporates social networks and disease parameters to predict the spread of disease and effects of policy and interventions. In preparing policy for prevention, surveillance and response to spread of contagious diseases such as smallpox, influenza or weaponized attacks, such models can be useful tools to explore the resulting changes in disease behavior throughout a community and supplement global models.  As a multi-agent model BioWar can be configured to explore differences based on agent characteristics such as age, sex, socioeconomic status, or disease response behavior.  Interventions such as pre-and post-vaccination, social distancing measures such as quarantine, school and work-closures can be explored to provide insights to policy makers and public health leaders. Real cities can be explored using census, school track, and other publicly available information. BioWar is an effort to develop a scaleable and precise simulation tool to examine disease propagation and agent behavior in response to disease and illness. Hurricane Dean

B. Blanchard, University of Florida
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On August 21, 2007, Hurricane Dean made landfall as a Category 5 storm and moved across the southern Yucatán peninsula. A multidisciplinary rapid assessment approach was developed by researchers from University of Florida, University of Virginia, and El Colegio de la Frontera Sur to investigate hurricane damage and short-term human responses using ethnographic interviews, ecological transects, and remote sensing. Initial research shows the utility of ground-based hurricane research since the apparent path of Hurricane Dean differs from that suggested by the national hurricane center. A resilience framework is applied to the question of sustainability of land-use and livelihood strategies in the region. Socioeconomic data suggests local people employ a strategy of diversification that has helped to mitigate the impacts of crop loss. It is not yet clear how people will cope with damage to economically productive community forestry systems or fallen timber that has increased fuel loads in this fire-prone region. Hurricane Dean will likely have a long-term effect on land-use and livelihood strategies, with livestock, charcoal production, and temporary migration emerging as key strategies in future potential scenarios. Our experience demonstrates the value of multidisciplinary rapid assessment for studying the impact of fast-acting events in coupled social-ecological systems.

Incorporating Uncertainty into Adaptive, Transboundary Water Challenges: a Conceptual Design for the Okavango River Basin
Anna Cathey, Gregory A Kiker, Rafael Muñoz-Carpena, Andrea E Gaughan, University of Florida, Agricultural and Biological Engineering
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In this poster, we present a review and conceptual design to integrate hydrological/ecological models, global uncertainty and sensitivity analysis, integrative modeling and decision analysis for complex and adaptive transboundary challenges. The research uses the transboundary issues within the Okavango River Basin, a shared water resource among the nations of Angola, Namibia and Botswana, as an example for constructing these integrated tools. The objective of this poster is to present a design that integrates a set of tools that builds systematically on past basin modeling research to incorporate the inherent uncertainty within the system and its application for answering practical management questions.

Local management and pest status of the banana weevil (Cosmopolites sordidus) in Talamanca, Costa Rica
R. Dahlquist, L. Hilje, and N.A. Bosque-Pérez, University of Idaho, Moscow
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Banana and plantain (Musa spp.) production in the Bribri and Cabécar indigenous territories of Costa Rica could be made more sustainable through improved pest management.  These crops are impor-tant for the livelihoods of small-scale farmers in the region since they provide cash income, and are also part of the local diet.  The proximity of the indigenous territories to several protected areas makes the protection of biodiversity in agricultural fields a key concern in the region.  The banana weevil, Cosmop-olites sordidus Germar, is a pest of banana and plantain in these systems.  Alternatives to pesticides for weevil management in plantain are  needed, since pesticides can be harmful to human health and biodiversity.  Improved weevil pest management could provide alternatives to pesticides in plantain.  In organic banana agroforestry systems, raising productivity through weevil management could benefit efforts to promote fresh fruit export and increase the competitiveness of these more diverse and biodiversity-friendly systems.  Levels of weevil damage and current management practices had not been determined within the territories prior to our work.  A rapid rural appraisal was conducted in five communities to determine current weevil management practices.  Pesticide use was reported by 63% of plantain farmers.  The majority of organic banana farmers (63%) did not manage for banana weevil, compared to 16% in plantain.  Pest management in organic banana farms consisted mainly of low-intensity farm sanitation.  Since many organic banana farmers do not manage for the banana weevil, including weevil management in a fresh fruit export project would require substantial extension work.

Obesigenic Environments and Environmental Justice: The Distribution of Walkable Neighborhoods in Phoenix, Arizona
Kate J. Darby, Bethany B. Cutts, Christopher G. Boone  and Alexandra Brewis, Arizona State University
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Sustainability incorporates considerations of societal well-being which include health outcomes that are mediated by the environment. Research demonstrates that the prevalence of obesity – an increasingly common health condition – is affected by built environment factors that facilitate or hinder physical activity and consumption of healthy foods. When elements of the built environment negatively affect individuals’ behaviors in this way, researchers refer to these environments as “obesigenic”. In this poster, we look at the distribution of walkable neighborhoods as one component of obesigenic environments to determine whether or not groups typically at risk for obesity also face built environment challenges to ameliorating obesity. In this analysis, we first chose two neighborhoods with markedly different demographic characteristics in which to conduct a detailed walkability audit. We then used Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analysis to assess walkability across the entire City of Phoenix. Both analyses demonstrate that low-income and Latino residents tend to reside in more walkable neighborhoods. These are the same groups, however, that tend to have higher rates of obesity. These results suggest that the physical activity benefits of walkable environments may be offset by other social or built environment characteristics.

A Metapopulation Model with Spatial Dynamics for Modeling the Spread of the Aphid-Vectored  Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus  in Grassland Communities Carrie Donkor, Vrushali Bokil, and Sean Moore, Oregon State University

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Spatial dynamics are important for plant pathogens because plant communities exist in spatially heterogeneous landscapes and host species are often distributed in patches that will influence the spread of the disease.  In this paper, a metapopulation model is developed describing the complex spatial dynamics of a disease that is transmitted by a vector to multiple host species.  The spatial propagation is modeled via multiple patches connected by migration paths.  Each patch has a Susceptible-Latent-Infectious (SEI) model for both host and vector species. We present an example of a model for the spread of the aphid-vectored Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus (BYDV) on two patches, each containing an aphid vector species and two host grass species. BYDV is one of the most economically important diseases of grain crops worldwide.  The virus is only spread through vector-host interactions. The vector species can migrate between patches causing significant changes in the dynamics of the virus. 
We obtain threshold conditions for our model to investigate the effects of host community composition and vector movement on BYDV dynamics at the local and regional levels. To this effect we calculate the disease free equilibrium and the basic reproduction number.  We will conduct a sensitivity analysis to assess the importance of migration of vectors, within-patch transmission rates, latent and infectious residency times as well as initial population sizes on the disease dynamics in the metapopulation.  Future work will include age structured dynamics within patches and generalization of the model for the spread of vectored plant pathogens among multiple species. 

 

Measuring the resilience of Brazil nut production to landscape-level change in the Western Amazon
A. Duchelle, and K. Kainer, University of Florida, Gainesville
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Understanding complex socio-ecological systems and their resilience to external shocks is essential for promoting sustainable management of natural resources.  The MAP tri-national frontier region, comprised of the states of Madre de Dios, Peru, Acre, Brazil, and Pando, Bolivia, provides an exceptional opportunity for exploring the resilience of Brazil nut production to landscape-level change.  Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa) is the most important non-timber forest product (NTFP) in the region, simultaneously promoting forest conservation and forming the livelihood base for rural communities.  The current development of the Interoceanic highway is radically changing the nature of this formerly remote region.  In this context, I hypothesize that Brazil nut production is most resilient when: 1) local extractivists actively manage Brazil nut stands; 2) property rights are secure; 3) Brazil nut provides adequate income for communities to discourage investment in alternative land uses; 4) deforestation and fire are minimal in Brazil nut stands; and 5) seedling recruitment assures long-term population viability.  Combinations of these variables were measured in 25 Brazil nut producing communities in Bolivia, Brazil and Peru using socioeconomic, spatial and ecological research methods.  This research is essential for understanding the changing role of NTFPs in bridging conservation and sustainable development in dynamic landscapes.

 

Climate Change Policies in the American States
Thomas Eatmon, Jr.; Southern University
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Almost two decades ago 191 countries of the world came together to acknowledge the climate system as a shared resource that could be potentially damaged by anthropogenic activities.  Today the international community struggles to build a climate change regime that can effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions before the planet spirals into crises.  The United States has failed to ratify the law binding targets set under the Kyoto Protocol, attracting a great deal of negative attention.  However many American states have begun the process of developing policies that target greenhouse gas emissions reductions through both market and regulatory mechanisms.  This marks a significant contribution to the efforts of the global community since many American states emit more greenhouse gases than do countries of the world.  As climate change policy innovations diffuse throughout the United States, innovation at the federal level of government is becoming inevitable.  International cooperation is far more likely when the United States can bring a negotiation package to the table that has already been accepted at home.  If the development of current domestic policy can be explained through scientific inquiry then an empirical foundation can be laid for the analysis of policy formation at the federal level. 

Tungsten Monocarbide as a Novel Electrode Material in Photoelectrochemical Solar Cells
Dan Esposito, Dr. Jingguang G. Chen, and Dr. Robert Birkmire, University of Delaware
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The characteristic solid/liquid junction of a photoelectrochemical cell (PEC) gives it several advantages over its solid state counterparts. These include ease of fabrication and the capability to convert sunlight directly into chemical energy such as hydrogen.   Despite these advantages, PECs have yet to enter the PV market place due to the absence of efficient, low-cost electrodes which are also stable in aqueous environments.   With these challenges in mind, the objective of this research is to develop economically viable PECs through exploration of existing and novel electrode materials while attaining a fundamental understanding of the charge transfer processes at the electrode/electrolyte interface.   Initial research has focused on the use of tungsten monocarbide as a counterelectrode material in a polysulfide based PEC system.  Preliminary results from combined surface science and electrochemical studies demonstrate that tungsten monocarbide is a stable electrocatalyst in the polysulfide electrolyte while showing higher electrocatalytic activity than platinum, a commonly used yet expensive electrode material.

Highly Altered Urban Ecosystems

M. Goldstein, University of California San Diego
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Recent economic development efforts in many major cities have focused on creating attractive and desirable waterfronts. However, the biological communities that inhabit urban waters have received far less attention. Here, I outline the beginnings of two studies that will examine the structure and function of highly altered urban ecosystems. The first study will explore the role of anthropogenic heavy metal pollution in facilitating ascidian invasions.  Ascidians are known to tolerate and sometimes deliberately accumulate heavy metals (e.g., vanadium), but the role that these metals might play in ascidians’ success as global invaders remains to be seen. The second study will examine mesoscale plastic debris (0.1 – 0.5 cm), which absorbs persistent organic pollutants such as PCBs and DDE (a breakdown product of DDT) from seawater. By concentrating and transporting these toxins, plastic debris could have a significant negative effect on the health of marine ecosystems. These studies will help to determine what environmental and political changes are necessary for highly altered ecosystems to regain a reasonable level of complexity and stability.

 

The Incidence of Environmental Regulations in California
Corbett Grainger, University of California Santa Barbara
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This research focuses on the distributional consequences of climate change and environmental regulations.  When evaluating different approaches to environmental policy, economists have generally focused on costs and efficiency.  However, just as fiscal policies may affect the poor and rich differently, so do environmental policies.  Some research has been done on the incidence of environmental regulations, but which income groups ultimately pay the costs of environmental regulation is largely unknown.  Because the poor may bear the largest burden of regulation, this research will aid policymakers in developing sustainable approaches to environmental policy.  I first develop a simple analytical general equilibrium model to analyze the distributional incidence of emissions permits, carbon taxes, and performance standards in a unified framework.  Results will be contrasted with partial equilibrium predictions.  The model will then be extended and calibrated to the California economy so that we can estimate the incidence of climate change policies in California. 

Effectiveness of Stream Restoration Techniques on Nitrogen Dynamics in Small Urban Watersheds

M.D.Harrison and P.Groffman, University of Baltimore Maryland
 

The effectiveness of best management practices (BMPs) employed in urban stream restoration (e.g., floodplain reconnectivity, in-stream geomorphic structures) to reduce nutrient loading and ultimately meet water quality standards remain uncertain. My research focuses on using an integrative approach that combines hydrology, geomorphology, and biogeochemistry to examine the impacts of urban stream restoration on nitrogen dynamics in streams in Baltimore County, Maryland. This research presents a unique opportunity to work with public officials and managers responsible for water quality in Baltimore, MD. Given that Baltimore is under a consent decree with EPA to improve its leaky sanitary sewer system; managers responsible are keenly interested in collaborating with researchers to quantify what happens as a result of restoration. Furthermore, there is a commitment from public officials to the broad objectives of the research, which involves examining the effects of stream restoration efforts, and improves our current knowledge of the impacts of various methods to resolve urban stream impairment.  In addition to the great practical interest in stream restoration, my research addresses fundamental questions about terrestrial aquatic ecosystem interactions as they influence flows of nitrogen in the landscape.

The Future of Jiuzhaigou National Park: Learning from the Past

Amanda Henck et al. University of Washington

Jiuzhaigou National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is China’s premier eco-geologic tourist attraction. With over 2,000,000 visitors annually, management of Jiuzhaigou’s natural and cultural resources is a daunting task. Planners and managers must balance preservation of the park’s natural beauty, hydrologic uniqueness, and ecological health, with protection of local culture and income from tourism. Because humans invariably impact the landscape upon which they live and recreate, understanding the net effect of their activities on the current ecological configuration of the park is important for informed decision-making and long-term sustainability. However, little systematic data have been collected on historic human activities within the park, how those activities affected the current distribution of plants and animals, or even how long people have been present.
To facilitate planning for sustainable growth we propose a comprehensive, interdisciplinary, and collaborative framework between Sichuan University, Jiuzhaigou National Park Science Department, and the University of Washington for collecting data and monitoring park cultural and ecological conditions. This framework includes preliminary investigation of Jiuzhaigou’s geology and soils, an archaeological survey of the upper villages in Yala valley and ethno-historical review, as well as an ecological assessment of current and historical landscapes. We tested several field methods for accomplishing these goals, while also collecting hard data towards these ends. A series of studies encompassing several different disciplines and faculty and students from both institutions as well as staff from the Jiuzhaigou’s Science Department was conducted between June 5 and June 20, 2007 and are presented in this poster.

 

Laying the foundation for in-situ conservation of teosinte (Zea mays ssp. parviglumis), the wild progenitor of maize
Matthew B. Hufford, University of California, Davis; José de Jesús Sánchez-Gonzalez,, Universidad de Guadalajara, Roberto Miranda-Medrano, Universidad de Guadalajara and Paul Gepts, University of California, Davis
[to view the poster, click here]

Teosinte is quickly disappearing from Mexico, its center of biodiversity, because of overgrazing and the rise of industrial forms of agriculture. As teosinte is lost, innumerable genes with global importance for maize breeding also vanish. The overarching goal of this project is to provide information necessary in laying the foundation for a comprehensive teosinte conservation strategy in three regions of the state of Jalisco. The primary objectives associated with this goal are: 1. Assess the historic and current extent and importance of teosinte populations with GIS mapping and landholder interviews; 2. Investigate genetic and ecological consequences of teosinte habitat fragmentation using microsatellite molecular markers and a common garden experiment; 3. Suggest appropriate conservation measures for teosinte populations based on mapping, landholder interviews, laboratory and field experiments, and the output of ecological models. Pilot interviews reveal great disparity in farmers’ attitudes toward teosinte: many feel that the plant is a problematic weed while others see it as an important forage crop and note that its presence in maize fields results in more vigorous maize plants.  Mapping efforts detail the fragmentary nature of once continuous teosinte populations.  Initial genetic data indicate that microsatellites developed for maize can be used successfully for molecular genetic studies of teosinte. As these data become more complete, conservation strategies will be suggested that allow for a balance between a prosperous agricultural sector in Mexico and the persistence of crucial habitat for teosinte and other crop wild relatives.

 

Addressing the Social Dimension of Sustainability in Corporate Decision Making
Margot J. Hutchins, Michigan Technological University
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Sustainability recognizes the interdependence of ecological, social, and economic systems – the three pillars of sustainability.  The definition of corporate social responsibility (CSR) often advocates ethical behavior with respect to these systems.  As more companies are committing to corporate social responsibility and sustainability policies, there is an increased demand for tools and methodologies that facilitate an understanding of the social impacts of decision-making throughout the supply chain.  This work explores a number of the key debates surrounding the measurement of social impacts and identifies some existing indicator frameworks.  An input-output methodology for describing the relationship between business decision-making and national-level measures of social sustainability is outlined.  A general strategy for considering measures of social sustainability is proposed, and a variety of indicators of CSR are described.  Several of these indicators are employed in an example to demonstrate how they may be applied to supply chain decision-making.

Distribution, Abundance, and Anthropogenic Disturbance of Migratory Shorebirds on Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge, Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Stephanie Koch, University of Rhode Island
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Shorebirds rely on stopover sites that provide critical foraging and roosting habitat during migration between arctic breeding grounds and South American wintering grounds.  Sites with extensive anthropogenic and/or natural disturbances may force shorebirds to spend less time foraging, expend more energy avoiding disturbances, or abandon the site.  Lower quality stopover sites may result in poor body condition and affect shorebirds’ ability to reach breeding or wintering grounds, and reduce adult or juvenile survivorship.  Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge (Refuge) in Massachusetts is one of the most important stopover sites for migratory shorebirds in eastern North America.  Although the 2,300 ha Refuge supports tens of thousands of shorebirds annually during migration, no quantitative studies have assessed the spatial distribution, abundance, or habitat use of migratory shorebirds at the Refuge.  The Refuge also hosts large numbers of visitors including birders, sunbathers, and fishermen during peak shorebird use periods.  Public use has not been quantitatively investigated and Refuge staff are interested in potential interactions between migratory shorebirds and visitors.  Ongoing research initiated in 2005 will: (1) quantify the spatial distribu-tion, abundance, age structure, and phenology of shorebirds using the Refuge throughout the migration period and identify influential natural parameters; (2) assess the spatial distribution and abundance of potential anthropogenic disturbances and; (3) quantify shorebird responses to anthropogenic disturbances.  Results from this study will inform Refuge staff making management decisions concerning shorebirds, and may be applicable to other sites along the Atlantic Coast where shorebirds and people are utilizing the same habitats.

 

Design Competition, Ford Calumet Environmental Center (2004)
Michael Iversen, University of Illinois at Chicago

This project was submitted as an entry to the Ford Calumet Environmental Center Design Competition, an education resource facility on the cultural and ecological heritage of the Lake Calumet area of Chicago.  The design was a collaborative effort between Michael Roy Iversen, Architect, and Griskelis Young Harrell Architects.  The Institute of Environmental Science and Policy (IESP) at UIC facilitated research assistance and support.  The project was unique in that it employed an interdisciplinary approach, one that included collaboration between professional architects, academics and other professions of various disciplines.
The design process was an investigation into the project’s sense of place, based on seeking those things that were unique and particular to the site. Instead of the erasure implied by new construction, the particular, conflicting and unresolved conditions of the place were embraced as the prime generators of from, space and tectonic detail.
                Our design philosophy was based on the principles of ecology, so as to design an urbanized ecosystem. If one uses the dynamical complex ecosystem as model for the design process, then a design epistemology can be derived on minimizing or eliminating the concept of waste.  Not only would “form follow function” (as per the specific needs of the client), but form would need to follow energy flows and material cycles as well.  In this way, the building is not an object, but rather an entity of system and processes that are informed from, and integrated by, the site.  Instead of being an idealized object superimposed on the land, the building grows out of the land, being shaped by the environmental forces at hand.  Our design aspired to be deeply contextual, like divining rods, revealing intrinsic, invisible energies and flows that are available at the site.

Napahai, Hengduan Mountains, China

Beth Lawrence
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Napahai is a dynamic seasonal karst marsh situated in the heart of the Hengduan Mountains in southwest China and was recently designated as a wetland of international importance.  Despite its significant hydrologic function at the headwaters of the Yangtze River and its importance as wintering grounds for the black-necked crane, Napahai is threatened by several factors, including altered hydrology, nutrient loading, tourism, and habitat degradation due to over-grazing and pig rutting.  My research aims to address knowledge gaps at the interface of biodiversity conservation and local livelihoods at Napahai in order to inform sustainable management of this dynamic wetland system.
I plan to characterize the nutrient responses of several plant species and establish test plantings near effluent to determine if the plantings reduce nutrient flows into the wetland.  I also intend to investigate the relationships between Tibetan grazing practices, altered hydrology and the wintering habitat of the black-necked crane using a combination of field work, traditional ecological knowledge, and greenhouse experiments.  Additionally, I will explore the relationship between plant diversity hotspots and patterns of dominance at Napahai to inform management of this system. 

Band Gap Reduction of Titanium Dioxide by Titanium Nitride Oxidation for Solar Hydrogen Generation

H. Lin, Meghan Schulz, Korhan Demirkan, S. Ismat Shah, and C.P. Huang, University of Delaware

Photoelectrochemical cells (PECs) are self-contained systems producing hydrogen gas via electrolysis of water, using only clean power from the sun. Our work involves modifying the band structure of TiO2 (a stable, UV-active photoanode material) to allow photocatalyst activation by visible light. Recently, nitrogen doped TiO2 has been synthesized by oxidation of pulsed laser deposition (PLD) prepared titanium nitride (TiN) thin films. The phase transformation of TiN to TiO2 appears to be a function of annealing time. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) studies show that substitutionally doped TiO2-xNx (N 1s ~ 396 eV) only appears during the first five minutes of annealing, with x being 0.12 and 0.04 for 1 and 2 minute annealing time, respectively. Only chemisorbed 1s ~ 400 and 402 eV) was observed when the annealing process exceeded five minutes. On a sample annealed for 5 minutes, the XPS depth profile analysis showed that the Ti:O:N atomic ratio remained nearly 1:2:0 for the first forty minutes of etching, and became 1:0.67:0.52 at eighty minutes. Evidently, the formation of TiO2-xNx by oxidation of TiN is through surface rather than bulk oxidation. Both rutile phase TiO2 and TiN structure were identified on the selected area diffraction (SAD) ring pattern. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results also showed a mixture of TiN and rutile phases over 24 hours of oxidation. The most stable phase of titanium nitride TiN (200) peak was completely diminished after 24 hours’ annealing. The optical study based on UV-Vis results showed that the red-shifting of absorption edge ranges from 53 to 143 nm compare to pure TiO2 samples, equivalent of 0.4 to 1.2 eV reduction in effective bandgap. Our results suggest that surface oxidation of TiN is a possible candidate for the synthesis of a visible light sensitive photocatalyst. 

Atmospheric Mercury:  Looking at a Global Pollutant on the Regional Scale

Caitlin Littlefield, Tracey Holloway, and Scott Spak, University of Wisconsin-Madison
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Mercury is a persistent, bioaccumulative neurotoxin, and as such, it is a serious public health issue. Of considerable concern is the fact that prenatal mercury exposure can result in severe developmental disorders in children, including brain damage, mental retardation, blindness, and speech problems. Mercury poisoning begins when mercury enters aquatic ecosystems and bacteria transform inorganic mercury compounds into toxic organic mercury species, such as methylmercury. In most of the world, atmospheric deposition is the primary source for mercury in water. In this respect, mercury is a challenge that connects atmospheric science, chemistry, water quality, aquatic ecosystems, food supply, risk communication, and public policy. Preventing mercury poisoning requires pre-emptive action, and in order to develop sound mercury regulation, we need to understand atmospheric mercury deposition and the factors that control mercury gas-particle partitioning.
Atmospheric mercury exists in three forms: gaseous elemental mercury (GEM), oxidized mercury or reactive gaseous mercury (RGM), and particulate mercury (PM). Distinguishing between these three forms becomes important when we consider mercury transport as well as wet and dry deposition velocities. In this study we will be using the latest mercury chemistry research to update a well-known air quality model – the Community Air Quality (CMAQ) Model. CMAQ is an EPA-developed atmospheric chemistry model that calculates atmospheric transport and chemistry given inputs of emissions (mercury and other species), meteorology, and land cover. We will first evaluate CMAQ’s current chemical mechanism for mercury by comparing data from rural and urban locations in Southern Wisconsin. After validating and updating the model, we will use it to project changes in atmospheric mercury associated with projected future climate.
By simulating atmospheric mercury in a model like CMAQ, we are able to better understand the processes that control atmospheric mercury, evaluate the affect of future climate change on mercury concentrations and deposition, and estimate the impacts of policy options. Understanding how atmospheric mercury may respond to a changing climate facilitates informed development of mercury and climate policies.

The Historical and Political Ecology of Huckleberrying in the Pacific Northwest

Joyce LeCompte-Mastenbrook, University of Washington
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There is a subtle conflict over huckleberry harvest and management throughout the northwestern US and British Columbia, Canada, which concerns the pressure of commercial harvesting on the availability of the resource, combined with a pervasive sense that current ecological conditions are tending toward a decline in the abundance of accessible, good quality patches.  The extent and quality of existing patches with long histories of use and management are declining due to management policy on public lands, particularly fire exclusion, as well as the designation of significant portions of forested lands to late-successional reserves under the Northwest Forest Plan, which will exacerbate the decline in habitat types that are suitable for good huckleberry production.
As an important food in the traditional diets of most coastal and inland northwest First Peoples, it is not surprising that Native Americans have been the most vocal in their concerns about commercial overexploitation of the resource.  Although a commercial market for huckleberries has existed for generations - many Native Americans also harvest the berries for cash - there is a general sense that both the nature of the market and of the commercial harvesting community has changed significantly over the past several years.  Concurrently, global trade is feeding the appetites of Japan, Germany and Australia among other places for the huckleberry, while the appeal of the antioxidant properties of berries in general contributes to their demand as a “nutraceutical” ingredient.

The Galápagos Islands: A Coupled Human-Natural System

Amy L. McCleary, Stephen J. Walsh, Carlos F. Mena, Julie P. Tuttle, Laura Brewington, and Patricia E. Polo, The University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
[to view the poster, click here]

The Galápagos Islands of Ecuador are located approximately 1,000 km off the coast of South America and are comprised of 13 large islands (four of which are inhabited) and more than 100 small rocks and islands. The Galápagos Islands were designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1978 to honor, protect, and conserve the unique natural features of the archipelago. During the past 20 years however, the Galápagos Islands have experienced dramatic social and ecological changes as a result of direct and indirect human pressures on the fragile ecosystems of the archipelago. The relationships and feedback mechanisms between demographic, socioeconomic, and ecological processes here are complex and the nature of these nonlinear relationships between people and the environment have immense consequences for the sustainability of the social and natural systems in the Galápagos. The general goal of our research is to assess the interplay between the human and natural systems of the Galápagos Islands in order to understand the complexity and nature of the interactions among people, place and the environment by collecting and analyzing social, biophysical, and geographic data within an integrative framework that incorporates perspectives from the disciplines of geography, anthropology, ecology, and sociology.

Little fire ants

Alexander Mikheyev
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The increase in worldwide human traffic has given rise to the scourge of invasive species that displace natives and de-stabilize ecosystems. The little fire ant Wasmannia auropunctata, is a well-traveled pest best known for eliminating native ants across a wide range of Pacific islands. In addition to devastating local faunas, W. auropunctata causes marked harm to human health and agriculture. Armed with a painful sting, the ant makes work in heavily infested areas impossible. Thus, although W. auropunctata was originally introduced as a biological control agent in cacao plantations in Central Africa, severe outbreaks have caused farms to be abandoned. I work on the economic and ecological factors responsible for the spread of W. auropunctata worldwide and, specifically, in Central Africa. In particular, I focus on the long-term environmental damage caused by the introduction of invasive species, such as W. auropunctata, by extractive industries, such as logging and petroleum production.  By integrating field surveys, chemical analysis, microsatellite genotyping and historical data from industrial sources, I was able to reconstruct the two-decade invasion history and impact of 23 W. auropunctata invasions around a Gabonese oilfield. These data present a picture of African rainforest in the near future, if the current land use practices continue.

Parks, People & Posterity: A Normative Analysis on International Conservation
Thad Miller, and Ben Minteer, Arizona State University
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Conservation biology is somewhat unique among the natural sciences in that it was established in response to a crisis, the rapid loss of biodiversity, with a clear mission – to stem the tide of this loss (Soulé 1985). Here, we examine the values motivating conservation biology's mission in the developing world. We analyze how these values have animated a renewed rift in the international conservation community: conservation biologists promoting protected areas ("nature protectionists") are pitted against more development-oriented conservationists ("social conservationists") intent on reforming the protected areas model to embrace sustainable use, ecotourism, and poverty alleviation efforts. At its core, the debate revolves around a simple but vexed question: What are the primary ends of conservation in the 21st century?  And just as important, what underlying ethical commitments drive these alternative visions in key conservation projects? 
In this poster we examine the historical and ethical elements of the preservationist – development dispute in conservation science today.  While recognizing the real tradeoffs between poverty alleviation and biodiversity conservation, we argue that the debate has in fact become unnecessarily polarized.  Part of the problem is that the ethical dimensions of the debate have not received as much attention as its scientific and economic aspects.  Accordingly, we develop a typology of values from an intensive review of the debate in the conservation science and development literatures, including ethical claims regarding (present) human welfare, future generations, and wild species and ecosystems.  This typology will lead to the creation of a more explicit, systematic normative framework that we believe will contribute to an improved understanding of the values driving conservation, and will be an important resource in achieving a pragmatic reconciliation of some of the core value conflicts and tradeoffs in conservation practice.

Towards a Theoretical Framework of Urban Growth
David Murillo, Marty Anderies and Carlos Castillo-Chavez, Arizona State University
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Fracturing of the landscape can have profound effects on the biodiversity of native and non-native species.  This is well studied in rain forests where scattered deforestation reduces biodiversity.  Similarly, urban encroachment is rarely accretive.  In particular, the Phoenix metro area has experienced a leap frog type growth where areas at the fringe of urban growth are passed over in favor of cheaper land farther out.  This type of growth accelerates the fracturing of the desert landscape and can isolate desert patches. 
The overwhelming trend is for urban areas to grow.  The challenge is to accentuate the positive effects of this growth (creativity, art, wealth, etc.) while mitigating the negative impacts (crime, pollution, poverty, loss of biodiversity, etc).  This is inherently complex since there are multiple physical, biological and social issues that are interconnected.  There are several studies on just one aspect of this problem, but I propose a more encompassing approach by looking at the interplay between institutions and ecological processes (topography, economics, etc) using both computational (computer simulations) and analytical (mathematical equations) approaches.  By modeling how growth alters biodiversity we can begin to get a handle on the big picture of managing our species' role in nature.

Climate change adaptation and mitigation in New York City’s power sector
Lily Parshall, Columbia University
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Global cities such as New York increasingly are taking a leading role on climate change adaptation and mitigation, including the commissioning of detailed studies on vulnerable infrastructure and the setting of ambitious greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets. The power sector is one of the key sectors of focus for both adaptation and mitigation measures. However, the ability of the local government to bring about change in this sector may be constrained by the dominance of short-term concerns over energy shortfalls and a complex institutional environment linking state and local agencies to power producers, utilities, and customers. Additionally, power sector planning must incorporate changes in climate due to the regional impacts of global climate change as well as the local impacts of the urban heat island effect. This study will use MARKAL, an integrated energy/economy/environment optimization model, to assess the least-cost evolution of the power sector over time under a range of climate scenarios and mitigation targets that incorporate anticipated changes in energy supply, demand, and prices. Though a powerful tool, limitations of MARKAL may require linkages with other tools to fully assess interactions between climate scenarios, institutional constraints, and policy targets.

 

Conserving Rhode Island coastal ponds: integrating terrestrial, freshwater and marine priorities
Anna S. Pfeiffer-Herbert, University of Rhode Island
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The coastal ponds of southern Rhode Island are essential habitat for fish and shellfish populations and important to the cultural history of the region.  These highly productive bodies of water, which fall in the intersection of terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments, have undergone dramatic ecological changes over the past century and face equally significant change in the coming decades.  The Nature Conservancy of Rhode Island is beginning to select priorities and strategies for conservation of the coastal ponds.  To assist this effort, I summarized the ecological history of species that are targeted for conservation and reviewed quantitative methods that are used as decision-support tools for prioritizing conservation actions.  I recommend using an ecosystem model combined with an artificial neural network for selecting conservation priorities that integrate the terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems and consider both spatial and temporal variability.

Climate change, water management, and adaptive capacity of socio-ecological systems

Abby Popp, University of Wisconsin

Given that global climate change is already occurring and has the potential to exacerbate existing water shortages, there is an urgent need to understand how management institutions and structures can adapt to this changing distribution in order to sustainably allocate water among ecological and social uses. Are there characteristics of management structures that allow them to adapt well to changes in resource availability? Are there characteristics that prove inhibitory?

Using global climate change as a context, I will explore and compare the adaptive capacity of social-ecological systems of the water-stressed arid regions of the U.S. and India. My research is guided by three broad themes: 1) Systems Dynamics: What are the significant human-environment interactions in water management systems and what effects might climate change have on these dynamics? 2) Cross-scale Interactions: How can organizations and users at multiple scales be coordinated to effectively manage water resources under situations of global climate change? 3) Knowledge and Information Networks: What are the influences of scientific and experiential knowledge on the adaptive capacity of these systems?

Finally, I intend to use systems analysis and modeling to identify the most significant factors and dynamics in these systems, the components that have the greatest bearing on adaptive capacity, and how these components may interact with climate change. I also plan to evaluate the usefulness of the social-ecological models for the design and evaluation of management actions.   Socio-ecological resilience and climate change adaptation in the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area, Botswana and Namibia Narcisa Pricope and John All, University of Florida

Socio-Ecological Resilience and Climate Change Adaptation in theKavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area, Namibia and Botswana

Narcisa Pricope, University of Florida and John All, Western Kentucky University
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This study examines climatic impacts on ecosystem health, wildlife habitat, and economic resilience for important ecological refuges and tourist destinations in the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area of Southern Africa. The future goal of the study is to determine socio-ecological factors that maximize ecosystem resilience in order to mitigate and adapt to future climate variability and change. Resource management and land tenure are evaluated in comparison to vegetation condition and health, once climate is accounted for, by comparing similar regions in the Okavango Delta, Botswana and Mamili and Mudumu National Parks in the Caprivi Strip, Namibia and the communal lands adjacent to the parks.  Resilience is measured through a Satellite-derived Ecological Comparative Index (SECI) where similar adjacent or nearly adjacent locations are indexed to each other using vegetation information derived from MODIS satellite data.  Locations are selected based upon within site homogeneous tenure and land use that differ between the sites.  These locations should have identical climate parameters and site characteristics do not change through time so that transient variables such as management differences or differential population changes can be evaluated directly in a straightforward manner.  Resilience will be determined by interannual variability – systems with high variability that change rapidly are more vulnerable to dramatic long term shifts and require the ecosystems to respond more vigorously to changes.   By comparing the relative interannual variability between identical sites that are used or managed differently, we can determine what resource management and land use policies provide the best adaption and mitigation strategies for climate change impacts.

Mapping Landscape Values of Hunting Communities under Access Constraints
 C. Shanley, S. Pyare, and G. Kofinas, University of Alaska Fairbanks
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The utility and impact of all-terrain vehicle (ATV) use on public land has become a growing debate throughout North America and beyond. Management agencies and the general public are concerned about ATV disturbance to key wildlife populations, while residents have come to rely on ATVs for hunting and recreational practices. To investigate this problem, we developed an interdisciplinary research project that combines wildlife habitat modeling with social science research techniques in Yakutat, Alaska, USA. The first phase of the project has focused on the social component, using a pilot study to investigate community landscape values with traditional ethnographic interviews and participatory-mapping. These results were contrasted with 4 proposed access management scenarios focused on habitat conservation, showing a significant decline in the amount of access to high value areas. These preliminary findings, combined with future interviews and wildlife habitat modeling, will allow regional land management agencies the ability to consider future spatially-explicit alternatives that balance the needs of the community with wildlife conservation for social-ecological sustainability.

Sustainable Hazard-Resistant Construction Using Indigenous Materials and Practices
Bhavna Sharma, University of Pittsburgh
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Development of sustainable construction materials is growing, with research and construction not limited to developing countries but being initiated worldwide. Structural applications of indigenous material resources such as bamboo are an integral part of sustainable development. The use of natural materials for construction, however, is limited to cultural-based traditions with little or no standardizations. To develop sustainable construction materials, in both an engineering and cultural sense, one must evaluate the traditional building techniques in terms of engineering standards and develop equivalent design methods to assess and improve structural performance.
Performance based design (PBD) provides a basis for the formalization and codification of non-engineered structures. The approach develops objectives that reflect the desired performance of the structure and can be additionally used to ensure a design achieves economic and social goals. Performance based seismic design (PBSD) utilizes a probabilistic analysis to determine the vulnerability of a structure in the event of a natural hazard such as an earthquake. Within a probabilistic framework, a methodology can be formulated for evaluating the performance of traditional and non-engineered structures. The assessment of sustainable construction materials will facilitate further understanding of the use of natural material resources as a basis for local-rural based sustainable development.

Social structure: the key to cooperative behavior?

Shade Shutters, Arizona State University
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Sustainable solutions to many of today's global crises require cooperation among nations. Such cooperation requires a subordination of national self-interests to those of a larger global community. Yet nations are loath to decrease their autonomy in order act collectively. This leads to a global level social dilemma and calls for a clearer understanding of the phenomenon of cooperative behavior. Here I examine a leading explanation for the evolution of cooperation – altruistic punishment. Computer simulations show that altruistic punishment, coupled with the simple addition of social structure, can lead to fully cooperative behavior.

A Complex Systems Approach to the Modeling and Characterization of Natural Ecosystems

Daniel B. Stouffer, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL
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The linear food chain of high school biology textbooks has been replaced by the food web, the increasingly complex network of trophic interactions in an ecosystem. This complexity, however, masks a number of robust statistical properties. Yet much research to date has concentrated upon predicting and testing the existence of such patterns rather than on the factors giving rise to them. In order to study such a complex problem, I incorporate concepts and methods from fields not traditionally aligned with ecology—such as chemical engineering and statistical physics—to develop an integrated approach. By following this approach, I have demonstrated that there are key universal features common to all ecosystems, independent of variables such as the population and type of species present, assembly history, or particular environment. These universal features include a number of important descriptors of the structure of food webs, as well as the empirically observed mechanism of prey selection. My research provides insight into, for example, how best to develop dynamic ecosystem models to probe the effect of exotic species.

The response of soil carbon to elevated nitrogen deposition in northeastern forests:  New measurements across six fertilization experiments
Marissa Weiss, Cornell University
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Historically soils have acted as a reservoir for carbon, slowly accumulating carbon over time.  I am wondering whether anthropogenic nitrogen deposition to northeastern forests could accelerate decomposition of some substrates within that carbon reservoir, diminishing the soil carbon pool and hastening the return of carbon, as carbon dioxide, to the atmosphere.  My aim is to understand mechanisms of the soil carbon response to nitrogen deposition.  I am testing the hypothesis that nitrogen stimulates decomposition of the most easily degradable carbon substrates, while inhibiting the decomposition of large, unruly, difficult to degrade carbon substrates.  I am testing this hypothesis across six forested sites in the northeastern U.S. with previously established nitrogen fertilization experiments.  I hope to apply my research to identify which soils are most prone to carbon loss when impacted by nitrogen deposition, to target those soils for timely conservation. 

Fire Regime in the Fynbos

Adam Wilson, University of Connecticut
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Fire is a defining component of the fynbos ecosystem in the Cape Floristic Region (CFR) of South Africa. Many ecologically important species require fire for reproduction and the frequency of fire is a primary determinant of species composition. It has been hypothesized that climate change will increase fire frequency by raising temperature and reducing the reliability of rainfall. However, little work has been done to quantify the relationship between fire occurrence and climate factors. In this study, we present spatio-temporal statistical models to explain the monthly variability of fire frequency in mountain fynbos regions from 1980-2000. Meteorological data are from the Climate Systems Analysis group in Cape Town and the fire data were provided by CapeNature. We found a clear relationship between temperature, precipitation, and fire events, with more and larger fires occurring in hotter, drier months and years. Other important factors include total precipitation over the previous 12 months and the El Nino Southern Oscillation. These findings have important ramifications for conservation and management of fynbos. If climate change leads to higher temperatures or lower rainfall, our models imply that fire frequency will increase. Increased fire frequency will favor re-sprouters and other species that reproduce quickly over plants with slower reproduction cycles. Thus, if the fire regime changes, the community composition of the fynbos could change.

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