An Interdisciplinary Team-Based International Research Experience in Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Community Development in the Ecuadorian Andes

厄瓜多尔安第斯山脉生物多样性保护和可持续社区发展的跨学科团队国际研究经验

• 批准号: 0966672
• 负责人: Lisette Waits
• 金额: $ 14.49万
• 依托单位: Regents of the University of Idaho
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2010-06-01 至 2014-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0966672&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Interdisciplinary; Team; Based; International; Research

The next generation of conservation professionals will require a unique skill set encompassing trans-disciplinary problem solving, sensitivity to varying cultural and political norms, and creativity and rigor in the face of challenging research environments. This International Research Experiences for Students (IRES) project seeks to train such professionals through directed undergraduate research conducted in neo-tropical Ecuador, in a cooperative initiative between the University of Idaho (UI) and the Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja (UTPL). Participating students from Idaho will work in small, vertically integrated, interdisciplinary teams (2-3 students) within the Andean Region of southern Ecuador, addressing individual research questions focused around an umbrella theme of biodiversity conservation and sustainable community development. Specific projects include the conservation genetics of endangered Andean species, biodiversity assessment and restoration of endangered orchids, international protected areas management and policy, and invertebrate taxa as bioindicators in regional watersheds. UI graduate students will serve as team leaders, while UTPL faculty and staff, coordinated by research vice-rector Dr. Juan Pablo Suárez, will serve as project leads. Southern Ecuador is noteworthy for its geographic, ecological, and cultural richness, and yet baseline knowledge is lacking for much of the country's natural heritage. This project's multinational research team encompasses expertise in landscape and organismal ecology, conservation biology, molecular systematics, landscape genetics, watershed management, environmental sociology, policy, sustainable community development, and education. Through targeted application of this expertise, the project will contribute to strategic conservation planning in the United States and other countries. Participating U.S. students will also gain experience with a rich array of cultures, thus building a sophisticated, externalized perspective on science and collaboration.

下一代的保护专业人员将需要独特的技能，包括跨学科问题解决，对不同的文化和政治规范的敏感性以及面对挑战研究环境的创造力和严格性。这项针对学生（IRES）项目的国际研究经验旨在通过在新热带厄瓜多尔进行的定向本科研究来培训这些专业人员，并在爱达荷大学（UI）与特殊的de loja大学（UI）之间的合作计划中进行了合作计划。来自爱达荷州的参与学生将在厄瓜多尔南部安第斯山脉地区的小型，垂直整合的跨学科团队（2-3名学生）中工作，以解决围绕生物多样性保护和可持续社区发展主题的个人研究问题。特定的项目包括濒危安第斯物种的保护遗传学，濒危兰花的生物多样性评估和恢复，国际保护区的管理和政策，以及无脊椎动物分类群，作为区域流域的生物指导者。 UI研究生将担任团队负责人，而由研究副总裁Juan PabloSuárez博士协调的UTPL教职员工将担任项目负责人。厄瓜多尔南部因其地理，生态和文化丰富而值得注意，但由于该国大部分自然遗产缺乏基线知识。该项目的跨国研究团队增强了景观和组织生态学，保护生物学，分子系统学，景观遗传学，分水岭管理，环境社会学，政策，可持续社区发展和教育方面的专业知识。通过针对该专业知识的有针对性的应用，该项目将有助于美国和其他国家的战略保护计划。参加的美国学生还将获得丰富的文化经验，从而建立了关于科学与协作的复杂，外部化的观点。