RUI-LTREB Renewal: Three decades of coral reef community dynamics in St. John, USVI: 2014-2019

RUI-LTREB 更新：美属维尔京群岛圣约翰珊瑚礁群落动态三十年：2014-2019

• 批准号: 1350146
• 负责人: Peter Edmunds
• 金额: $ 46.97万
• 依托单位: The University Corporation, Northridge
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2014-05-01 至 2020-04-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1350146&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: RUI; LTREB; Renewal; Three; decades

Describing how ecosystems like coral reefs are changing is at the forefront of efforts to evaluate the biological consequences of global climate change and ocean acidification. Coral reefs have become the poster child of these efforts. Amid concern that they could become ecologically extinct within a century, describing what has been lost, what is left, and what is at risk, is of paramount importance. This project exploits an unrivalled legacy of information beginning in 1987 to evaluate the form in which reefs will persist, and the extent to which they will be able to resist further onslaughts of environmental challenges. This long-term project continues a 27-year study of Caribbean coral reefs. The diverse data collected will allow the investigators to determine the roles of local and global disturbances in reef degradation. The data will also reveal the structure and function of reefs in a future with more human disturbances, when corals may no longer dominate tropical reefs. The broad societal impacts of this project include advancing understanding of an ecosystem that has long been held emblematic of the beauty, diversity, and delicacy of the biological world. Proposed research will expose new generations of undergraduate and graduate students to natural history and the quantitative assessment of the ways in which our planet is changing. This training will lead to a more profound understanding of contemporary ecology at the same time that it promotes excellence in STEM careers and supports technology infrastructure in the United States. Partnerships will be established between universities and high schools to bring university faculty and students in contact with k-12 educators and their students, allow teachers to carry out research in inspiring coral reef locations, and motivate children to pursue STEM careers. Open access to decades of legacy data will stimulate further research and teaching.

描述珊瑚礁等生态系统如何变化是评估全球气候变化和海洋酸化的生物后果的最前沿的工作。 珊瑚礁已成为这些努力的典型代表。由于担心它们可能在一个世纪内生态灭绝，描述已经消失的东西、剩下的东西以及面临危险的东西是至关重要的。 该项目利用自 1987 年开始的无与伦比的信息遗产来评估珊瑚礁将持续存在的形式，以及它们能够在多大程度上抵御环境挑战的进一步冲击。这个长期项目延续了对加勒比珊瑚礁长达 27 年的研究。收集到的各种数据将使研究人员能够确定局部和全球扰动在珊瑚礁退化中的作用。这些数据还将揭示未来人类干扰更多时珊瑚礁的结构和功能，届时珊瑚可能不再占热带珊瑚礁的主导地位。该项目的广泛社会影响包括增进对生态系统的理解，长期以来，生态系统一直被视为生物世界美丽、多样性和精致的象征。拟议的研究将使新一代本科生和研究生了解自然历史以及对地球变化方式的定量评估。该培训将使人们对当代生态学有更深刻的理解，同时促进 STEM 职业的卓越发展并支持美国的技术基础设施。大学和高中之间将建立合作伙伴关系，让大学教师和学生与 k-12 教育工作者及其学生保持联系，让教师能够在鼓舞人心的珊瑚礁地点开展研究，并激励孩子们追求 STEM 职业。开放获取数十年的遗留数据将刺激进一步的研究和教学。