2018
Student: Anthony Moller
Faculty: Rob Jackson
Research: Impacts of shifting fire regimes on ecosystem carbon and nutrient cycling and biodiversity
Department: Earth System Science
We are conducting a large-scale survey to investigate the effect of long-term changes in fire regimes on ecosystem carbon and nutrient cycling and plant biodiversity across the globe. Fire frequencies are changing dramatically across the world, and increasing in frequency throughout most of the US; consequently, we hope to better understand the effect of changes in fire frequency on ecosystems. Our project contains collaborators in a number of organizations and our findings will have implications for how fire is managed in our research areas. Tony will be focusing his investigation on our work in National Parks, where there are a number of avenues to communicate our scientific findings to the broader community. We hope that our results will inform fire management policy to balance the need to conserve biodiversity, maintain healthy carbon and nutrient cycles, and reduce the risk of severe wildfire.
Student: Freya Chay
Faculty: Fiorenza Micheli
Research: Effects of ocean acidification on seagrass ecosystem structure and function
Department: Biology, Hopkins Marine Station
This project is a part of doctoral thesis work investigating the influences of ocean acidification on the structure, ecological interactions, and ecosystem function of a key coastal marine ecosystems associated with seagrasses. We are using low pH caused by natural CO2 venting activities (on Ischia Island, Italy) to examine how acidification may alter the composition and diversity of marine invertebrate species and functional groups, and the resulting rates of grazing and decomposition of plant material. We utilized pH gradients at vents to quantify seagrass litter decomposition rates in litter bag experiments, as well as the composition of invertebrates, microbes and fungi along the gradient. Physical variables and seawater chemistry are simultaneously characterized along the gradient. Ultimately, the project will increase our understanding of how ocean acidification will affect important ecosystem functions such as decomposition of organic matter and nutrient cycling.
Student: Hailey Deres
Faculty: Erik Sperling
Research: Effects of oxygen, temperature, and body size on the habitable range of red abalone
Department: Geological Sciences
Anthropogenic climate change has caused dramatic ocean warming and de-oxygenation. Marine ecosystems are fragile, and important fishery species like red abalone will likely experience a rapid decline in their habitable range. We will use the 'metabolic index' as a framework for mapping abalone habitable ranges. This is the first time this promising energetics-based approach has been used to predict future organismal habitability against high-resolution oxygen/temperature predictions for the U.S. west coast. These predictions of future habitable range will be have high utility in conservation and fisheries planning. We also plan to test the role of body size in temperature-dependent hypoxia. Smaller body sizes should be favored in low oxygen/high temperature environments due to a higher surface area/volume ratio. We hope that this project will show how oxygen thresholds vary with temperature in larval to adult abalone to test this physiological principle.
Student: Katherine Moldow
Faculty: Brian Knutson & Nik Sawe
Research: Using Psychology and Neuroeconomics Methods to Study Pro-Environmental Behavior
Department: Psychology/EIPER
This project will involve supporting several ongoing studies that use a combination of approaches from psychology, economics, and neuroscience to study human decision-making on environmental issues. These include: studying ways to change commuter behavior to utilize public transportation options using a combination of messaging, signed pledges, and incentives as part of a controlled behavioral intervention trial with survey and choice experiment components; using a suite of neuro-imaging experiments to predict the efficacy of campaigns by environmental nonprofits at fostering advocacy and conservation funding, the mechanisms that motivate species conservation, and what motivates the success of nature imagery on social media; and opportunities to utilize behavioral economics approaches to reduce energy consumption both in the residential and transportation sectors through the creation of materials for literature review.
Student: Kaylee Beam
Faculty: Nicole Ardoin
Research: Constructing nature, environment, and environmentalism in environmental education
Department: Graduate School of Education and Woods Institute
How we conceive of nature and what it means to be an environmentalist have the potential to influence our attitudes and behaviors with regard to the environment. Environmental and nature education experiences play a key role in shaping some of those conceptions for many of today's adolescents, and thus represent an important opportunity to affect the environmental choices of the next generation. This project combines qualitative methods (interviews, ethnographic observation, qualitative assessment of student writing samples) and quantitative methods (linguistic word count, implicit association testing, quantitative content analyses of student writing and mainstream media) from environmental education, social psychology, and linguistics, to explore (1) how educators construct 'environmentalist' and 'environmentalism'with students, (2) what opportunities students have to feel included in the environmental movement, and (3) how students more broadly construct their own individual relationships to nature.
Student: Lynée Turek-Hankins
Faculty: Katharine Mach
Research: Managing flood risk through land use policy
Department: Earth System Science
In this study, we will focus on the siting of hazardous industrial facilities, which are particularly dangerous because they may spill contaminants or toxins if flooded. By examining where flood-prone hazardous industrial facilities coincide with high levels of social vulnerability (e.g., agriculture-dependent, low-income, or otherwise disadvantaged communities), we will assess the spatial variation of high-risk communities (many flood-prone industrial facilities, highly vulnerable) and low-risk communities (few flood-prone facilities, low vulnerability). This project will combine the spatial analysis with an assessment of local land use regulations to determine if and how municipalities exacerbate or reduce flood risk from hazardous industrial facilities. Ultimately, the findings from the study will provide new insight into the consequences of flood risk management policy today, particularly for socially disadvantaged groups.
Student: Maceo Hastings Porro
Faculty: Kate Maher
Research: Determining trace metal distributions in vegetation and soils in a mining-impacted headwaters catchment
Department: Earth System Science
This research project will integrate field sampling of vegetation in riparian and floodplain environments with remotely sensed vegetation information. The sampling will focus on intra- and inter-species foliar chemistry across three adjacent watersheds in Colorado, located proximal to the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory (RMBL). Two of the watersheds (Coal and Slate Creeks) are highly impacted by naturally occurring mineralization and historical mining activities, whereas one of the watersheds (East River) is relatively pristine. Coal Creek is the local water supply for the town of Crested Butte, CO and understanding metal distributions and release to surface waters is a central concern of the local community. This project seeks to first understand the distribution of metals across the floodplain and riparian vegetation in relation to stream and sediment concentrations. Assuming we find metal accumulation in plants growing in meta-contaminated sites, the project will then explore whether metal accumulation translates into a biochemical signature that is detectable at leaf-level and ideally, using airborne remote sensing. The ultimate goal of the project is to determine if airborne remote sensing data can be used to identify and map the distributions of metals in sediments using foliar chemistry or foliar response as an indicator.
Student: Niza Contreras
Faculty: Jonathan Payne
Research: Estimating global extinction threat levels in Odonata (dragonflies & damselflies)
Department: Geological Sciences
Approximately 45% of the described species belonging to the insect order Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) have been assessed for extinction threat. This is a relatively high percentage compared to other classes and orders of invertebrate animals, yet the threat status for the majority of species remains unknown, preventing a comprehensive conservation response. We will use the IUCN Red List threat statuses of 2716 assessed species of Odonata to create a logistic regression model of extinction threat status as predicted by four macroecological variables: body size, geographic range, habitat breadth, and sighting history. This model will then be applied to the remaining unassessed species for which we all have all four predictor variables. All four predictors variables are associated with extinction threat status in other living animal groups and with extinction versus survival in ancient extinction events recorded by the fossil record. The objective of this study is to rapidly evaluate the likely threat status for large numbers of species that have not been formally evaluated for threat status, thereby, quickly identifying the unassessed species most likely to be at risk of extinction and enabling more comprehensive conservation response at the landscape scale. The resulting list of estimated threat levels will complement the IUCN Red List and other formal assessment programs by providing a means for selecting species and geographic regions for highest priority.
Student: Zheng Yan
Faculty: Giulio De Leo
Research: Modern-day dodos: designing protected areas for the world's-largest, heavily-hunted land crab
Department: Biology, Hopkins Marine Station
Weighing in at over 4kg and spanning up to a meter across, the coconut crab (Birgus latro) is among the largest native land animals on many Indo-Pacific islands. This gargantuan, jungle-dwelling crab has been hunted for hundreds of years, but growth of human populations and habitat destruction have increasingly caused localized crab extinctions around the world. Despite its ecological, cultural, and nutritional importance to many island nations, we have a very poor understanding of the crab's ecology and population trends. An improved understanding of both the coconut crab's ecology and the impacts of traditional crab hunters are critical for assessing the threats that it currently faces and for tailoring effective conservation measures to meet these challenges. The primary objective of this project is to improve understanding of the critical habitat, home range, and current ecological challenges of the coconut crab (Birgus latro). Towards these goals, our ongoing project aims to a) analyze the movements of coconut crab using GPS tag data to understand their habitat preferences and b) assess anthropologically-informed interviews with indigenous coconut crab hunters to understand the magnitude of their impacts and the potential for alternate harvest strategies.
2017
Student: Cheyenne Peltier
Faculty: Robert Waymouth
Research: Development of new catalysts for sustainable plastics
Department: Chemistry
The aim of this interdisciplinary project is to combine computational chemistry, polymer chemistry and material science to develop new catalysts and processes for generating biodegradable plastics. This research is working towards reducing the effects of plastics on the environment by establishing chemical design principles that will enable the development of practical technologies for inventing future fully recyclable polymeric materials and for recycling or creatively reusing important existing polymeric materials. Main components of the project include rationally designing new selective catalysts for generating biodegradable polymers as well as chemically recycling these materials at the end of their useful life.
Student: Sijo Smith
Faculty: Elizabeth Hadly
Research: Conservation Paleobiology in the Caribbean
Department: Biology
We propose to use recently excavated fossils (representing approximately 10,000 ybp to present) from the Caribbean islands of Hispaniola and Puerto Rico, combined with climate records and modern species occurrence data, to forecast how climate change will impact the remaining native mammals. Previous studies by the Hadly lab have linked these extinctions to both climate change and human activities through the archeological record, but have yet to connect these patterns with concrete conservation planning. To accomplish this, we will produce maps of species/climate associations from the last glacial maximum, present, and 50-100 years into the future using IPCC projections.
Student: Geoffrey Oliver Lewis
Faculty: Scott Fendorf
Research: Understanding stresses of climate change and soil arsenic on rice yield
Department: Earth System Science
The goal of this project is to asses to what extent elevated temperature and atmospheric CO2 affect the movement of arsenic from the bulk soil to the rhizosphere and ultimately into the rice root. To this end, the geochemistry of the soil and rhizosphere, specifically changes in arsenic speciation and mobility, and rice root physiology will help to understand the fate of arsenic within the soil-rice continuum.
Student: Gabriel (Gabi) Saiz
Faculty: Lisa Curran
Research: The effect of prescribed burns on Yurok & Karuk tribes and forests in Northern California
Department: Anthropology
We plan to assess tribal prescribed burning practices through ecological monitoring, interviews, and monitoring harvesting to evaluate if these practices alter resource abundance and access as intended. To expand this assessment, we combine aerial photographs (1944-2016) and satellite imagery to compare historical and current prairie characteristics throughout Yurok and Karuk ancestral territories. The aim is to evaluate how long-term fire exclusion may have altered fire-dependent ecological communities.
Student: Hannah Beutler
Faculty: Rob Dunbar
Research: Climate change impacts on subsistence harvesters in Arctic National Parks
Department: Earth Systems
The overarching goal of this research project is to characterize where, when, and how human subsistence users access marine resources within and near Arctic coastal National parklands and the effects of climate change on access. The proposed study is novel and interdisciplinary and will include multiple perspectives on the effects of climate change on coastal access through interviews of NPS staff and subsistence harvesters and analyses of existing data sets on climate change and subsistence harvest.
Student: Ali Hoffer
Faculty: Greg Asner
Research: Human impacts on ecosystem function in the Peruvian Amazon
Department: Carnegie Global Ecology
This project aims to examine how human activities in the Southeastern Peruvian Amazon influence ecosystem functioning. This project focuses on two common activities that take place in this region: agriculture and gold mining. We intend to first study soil microbial community composition and gene diversity in intact regions of the forest to serve as a baseline for soil community structure without human intervention.
Student: Michael Burnett
Faculty: Fiorenza Micheli
Research: Designing protected areas for the largest land crab
Department: Biology
The primary objective of this project is to improve understanding of the critical habitat, home range, and current ecological challenges of the coconut crab (Birgus latro). Towards these goals, our ongoing project aims to a) track the movements of coconut crab using GPS tags to understand their habitat preferences and b) conduct anthropologically-informed interviews with indigenous coconut crab hunters to assess the magnitude of their impacts and the potential for alternate harvest strategies.
Student: Anna Yang
Faculty: Kabir Peay
Research: How carbon & nitrogen flow change with environmental context
Department: Biology
This project will investigate the influence of belowground competition and N availability on resource trading in the EM mutualism. Using methods from engineering, chemistry, biology, and ecology, the student will use stable isotopes to track C and N flow in EM pine seedlings, varying the number of fungi on the root system and changing the amount of N available to examine the effects of competition and N deposition on resource trading in the system.
Student: Adam Stanford-Moore
Faculty: Dustin Schroeder
Research: Glacier velocity on Mt Baker, WA
Department: Geophysics
The project aims to measure subdaily fluctuations in glacier velocity on Mt. Baker, Washington state and connect these variations in velocity to changes in water flow underneath the glacier. Using a new technology, terrestrial radar interferometry (TRI), to monitor the subdaily fluctuations in ice speed of glaciers on Mt. Baker, we hope to fill this observational gap.
2016
Student: Alexandra Nguyen-Phuc
Faculty: Nicole Ardoin
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Environmental Stewardship and Literacy through Residential Education Programs in National Parks
Department: Education
This interdisciplinary research builds on a partnership between the Ardoin Lab (School of Education and Woods Institute) and NatureBridge, a national NGO that provides residential environmental education in national parks. The study explores the relationship between connection to nature, community-building, and stewardship behavior. There is also an art-based assessment to measure changes in environmental literacy during an environmental education program in Marin Headlands which will be adapted and re-implemented in Golden Gate and possibly Yosemite. We will also be working with a local school district whose classes have attended NatureBridge for the past 30 years. We will explore the relationship between in- and out-of-classroom science and environmental learning in this community.
Student: Ambika Acharya
Faculty: Stefano Ermon
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Closing the data divide: machine learning approaches for understanding livelihoods of the poor using unconventional data sources
Department: Computer Science
A deeper understanding of the drivers of poverty and hunger is one of the grand challenges of sustainability science. But progress on this challenge has been slow, mainly because data is scarce and with very limited spatial and temporal resolution. The project will involve mapping livelihoods in developing countries using large-scale machine learning models (graphical models and deep learning) and unconventional data sources.
Student: Erin Pang
Faculty: Janet Martinez
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Assessing the performance and effectiveness of past groundwater management experiences in California
Department: Law School
The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), enacted by the state legislature in 2014, represents California's first statewide regime for groundwater management. The goal of this project is to assess the performance of a set of 16 case studies, including adjudications, special act districts, voluntary groundwater management plans, and county ordinances. This research will be used in conjunction with a related case study project investigating the role of geophysical data on groundwater management decisions and the governance structure(s) emerging under SGMA. Jointly, this work will be used to help local government agencies and water managers in deciding how to form Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs) under SGMA, and in identifying policy alternatives to achieve sustainable management in each groundwater basin, as required under SGMA.
Student: Isabelle Smythe
Faculty: David Lobell
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Rapid monitoring of food price responses to environmental shocks
Department: Earth Systems Science
Environmental shocks, such as large-scale droughts or heat waves, can have important effects on food supply and food security. Responses to food market crises are numerous and complex, but can prove extremely effective, particularly when implemented immediately. The project will apply tools of computer science and data mining to the topic of food security, and any resulting methods would allow future study of responses to environmental changes in the region.
Student: Johnny Caspers
Faculty: Roz Naylor
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Using Lessons from Intensive Livestock to Guide Aquaculture Practices
Department: Earth Systems Science
This project examines the growth and geographical distribution of intensive livestock production in the U.S. since 1950. Our methods include spatial analysis using GIS, and discourse analysis using topic modeling and text assessment. We will assess the likelihood of aquaculture expansion following the trajectory of livestock expansion with its promises and pitfalls and identify environmentally sound practices.
Student: Jonas Kemp
Faculty: Giulio DeLeo
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Quantification and modelling of ecosystem services of native prawns in Senegal, West Africa, to fight schistosomiasis, a disease of poverty
Department: Biology
Schistosomiasis is a debilitating parasitic infection affecting more than 220 million people in the developing world, especially where dams and water projects have greatly expanded freshwater habitat for snails, the parasite's intermediate hosts. The project challenge is to assess the long-term economic and ecological feasibility of a health initiative (Aquaculture Pour La Sante), and quantify the benefits to the environment, livelihoods, and health in Senegal, West Africa. We will assess the socio-economic impact of schistosomiasis as well as of other neglected tropical diseases.
Student: Luke Miller
Faculty: Steve Luby
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Exploring strategies to prevent lead exposure in rural Bangladesh
Department: Medicine
As a potent neurotoxin, lead poses a serious threat to public health and human intellectual capital worldwide. This research allows us to collect additional samples of lead-soldered cans and their contents to determine lead concentrations. At the same time, we aim to explore strategies to reduce lead exposure among pregnant women and children by i) identifying potential government and political stakeholders to engage in long-term societal and policy change, ii) exploring alternatives to using lead solder among can manufacturers, and iii) identifying alternatives to current household food storage practices.
Student: Maria Marta Rey Malca De Habich
Faculty: Greg Asner
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Deforestation and Private Land Concessions in the Peruvian Amazon
Department: Earth Systems Science
The student will participate in an interdisciplinary project supported by Stanford and Carnegie Institution for Science. This research seeks to understand under what conditions deforestation occurs in the Peruvian Amazon, using tools from global ecology to measure forest change, and using tools from political science to understand the underlying causes of that deforestation. We will also assess whether public sustainability commitments made by concession holders have an observable impact on deforestation rates at the concession level.
Student: Samantha Faul
Faculty: Rodolfo Dirzo
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Effects of agricultural intensity on biodiversity via analysis of species interaction networks
Department: Biology
This project will consider the effects of agricultural intensification on multiple species interactions by constructing plant-pollinator, plant-herbivore, plant-seed disperser, and bird-insect interaction networks. It will compare food resource diversity, wildlife diversity, and network structure between monoculture farms, diversified agriculture (farms that provide resources to wildlife through purposeful restoration techniques), and natural areas on the central California coast. This study's findings can be useful in designing effective agricultural management strategies for biodiversity conservation, and it will also provide a comprehensive dataset of multiple interaction networks, a scarce but vital resource for understanding ecological community dynamics.
Student: Sarah Elizabeth Brickman
Faculty: Eric Lambin
Year Funded: 2016
Research: Sustainable Sourcing Practices in the Food and Fiber Industries: Produce and Supply Chain Determinants
Department: Earth Systems Science
We hypothesize that company, supply chain and product characteristics are all associated with the types of sustainable sourcing practices used by companies. We will use a representative random sample of food and fiber companies to evaluate corporate sustainable sourcing practices. This research will help characterize the recent rise in sustainable sourcing practices while also providing the first of its kind empirical dataset to allow for testing of a set of hypotheses proposed by the literature.
2015
Student: Ada Throckmorton
Faculty: Leonard Ortolano
Year Funded: 2015
Research: Business Leadership & Environmental Sustainability
Department: Civil & Environmental Engineering (CEE)
Within this context of environmental sustainability and business, this project draws on theories and methods from multiple disciplines – including psychology, sociology, education, public policy, philosophy, and economics – to examine the integration of environmental sustainability within business management education. More specifically, this project will use data from in-depth qualitative interviews of business students to develop insights into three questions: 1) What and how business students are learning and thinking about sustainability issues in a corporate context?, 2) How is the social influence of their peers influencing their beliefs and behaviors?, and 3) What are the main barriers to changing these beliefs, and behaviors? These insights will inform the design of controlled behavioral intervention experiments to further test ideas about business students’ attitudes and behaviors towards environmental sustainability.
Student: Alan Wei
Faculty: Christopher Francis
Year Funded: 2015
Research: Simulating Seasonal Cycles of the Colorado River Basin: Nitrogen Cycling Insights and Implications for U(IV) Release
Department: Civil Environmental Engineering
Throughout the Colorado River Basin, uranium persists as a relic contaminant of former ore processing activities in fine-grained, organic-rich sediments found within the floodplain alluvium. We hypothesize that when seasonally elevated groundwater levels recede and the subsurface system becomes anoxic, nitrate diffuses into the reduced interiors of organic-rich sediments and becomes readily available for denitrification, the stepwise anaerobic reduction of nitrate/nitrite to dinitrogen gas. Using a series of diffusion-limited flow chambers with organic-rich sediment from Rifle, CO, this research will simulate seasonal groundwater trends observed in the field over an accelerated 12-week period in the laboratory.
Student: Ariel Bobbett
Faculty: Peter Vitousek
Year Funded: 2015
Research: Uala Growth over a Climate Gradient: a Tool for Understanding Traditional Rainfed Agriculture in Hawaii
Department: Biology
Intensive rain-fed agricultural systems represented the foundation of the agricultural economies of the island of Hawaii and parts of Maui in the centuries before European contact. These systems largely were abandoned in the nineteenth century and our understanding of how they functioned as productive systems is sparse. Using the uala (sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas) as a model, we will compare how plantings in different climate gradients affected yields historically.
Student: Minjia Zhong
Faculty: Paul Ehrlich
Year Funded: 2015
Research: Predation Analysis of Checkerspot Butterfly Euphydryas gillettii Population at Gothic Colorado
Department: Biology
A population of Euphydryas gillettii translocated to Gothic, CO is a closely monitored case study depicting the effects of climate change on population dynamics. We will research how climate drivers may have an indirect effect by impacting egg clusters’ exposure to predation through the collection and analysis of predation data compared to earlier collection dates.
Student: Meghan Shea
Faculty: Rob Dunbar
Year Funded: 2015
Research: A Lagrangian Study of the Carbonate Chemistry in Coupled Mangrove, Seagrass, and Coral Communities in Palau
Department: Environmental Earth Systems Science
To gain insight into coral community metabolism and chemistry, we plan to study coral ecosystems in close proximity to mangrove and/or seagrass-dominated environments. Using Lagrangian drifts to follow water currents and through utilization of temperature measurements and benthic sampling, we will show that coral living in these mangrove and/or seagrass-dominated environments exhibits both higher net community calcification (NCC) and net community productivity (NCP) than their more isolated counterparts.
Student: Nick White
Faculty: Giulio De Leo
Year Funded: 2015
Research: Assessing the socio-economic impact of Schistosomiasis in sub-Saharan Africa
Department: Biology
Schistosomiasis is a debilitating parasitic infection affecting more than 220 million people in the developing world, especially where dams and water projects have greatly expanded freshwater habitat for snails, the parasite’s intermediate hosts. We are investigating the viability and cost-effectiveness of a novel biological control approach based on the reintroduction of native crustacean predators (prawns) of snails in small aquaculture facilities.
Student: Nicole Bennet-Fite & Rosemary Mena-Wirth
Faculty: William Durham
Year Funded: 2015
Research: Research in Environmental Learning: Assessing SELAL in Osa, Costa Rica
Department: Anthropology
This project will assess the environmental learning of a supplemental education program (the “Stanford Environmental Leadership and Language Program,” SELAL) for high school students in Osa, Costa Rica. The program, based on a local needs assessment by INOGO in 2012, offered intensive summer-break training to high school seniors to foster environmental knowledge, leadership preparation, a strong working knowledge of English, and a sense of personal, community, and environmental responsibility.
Student: Rick Duenas
Faculty: Thomas Robinson
Year Funded: 2015
Research: Evaluation of disseminating an energy and environment intervention for Girl Scouts
Department: Pediatrics
The goal of this project is to continue ongoing research regarding the evaluation of a MOOC to prepare Girl Scouts leaders to deliver an energy and environment behavior change program. The intervention proved effective in changing home electricity and food and transportation behaviors in a randomized controlled trial in 4th and 5th grade Girl Scouts and their families (Girls Learning Energy and the Environment [GLEE])
Student: Sierra Kephart-Clary
Faculty: John Krosnick
Year Funded: 2015
Research: Public Opinion on Climate Change
Department: Communication & Political Science
In recent surveys, we found that when Americans are asked to guess the opinions of Americans on the issue of climate change, people underestimate the prevalence of green opinions and underestimate the gap between Republicans and Democrats.This project will explore one possible explanation: that news media coverage of public opinion polls has emphasized polls finding 50-50 splits of the public rather than polls finding majorities of green opinions.
2014
Student: Amelia Farber
Faculty: Nicole Ardoin
Year Funded: 2014
Research: Social Ecological Approaches to PromotingEnvironmental and Stewardship Behavior: The Role of Environmental Education
Department: School of Education
This project will enhance ongoing research on environmental education programs. Specifically, we will examine motivations for and barriers to environmental behavior among a range of audiences and in varying settings; program evaluation and adaptive management in informal settings such as parks and museums; the use of social strategies by non-governmental organizations to engage individuals and communities in decision-making related to natural resource management; leadership and training programs in natural resources and conservation; and the impact of “green” buildings and the built environment on environmental attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors.
Student: Ashley Jowell
Faculty: Thomas Robinson
Year Funded: 2014
Research: Online Dissemination of the Girls Learning Energy and the Environment (GLEE) Program
Department: Pediatrics
Our interdisciplinary team recently successfully developed and evaluated the Girls Learning Energy and Environment (GLEE) intervention, to promote energy conservation and environmental sustainability behaviors among 4th and 5th grade Girl Scouts and their families. We will work with the Vice Provost of Online Learning Office to create the
MOOC; produce training videos, structure the curriculum, and make the most of the edX platform.
Student: Corey Radis
Faculty: Scott Fendorf
Year Funded: 2014
Research: Testing the Feasibility of Using Sediment Accumulated in Searsville Dam as Agricultural Soil
Department: Earth System Science
This project will examine the potential usage of sediments found in the Searsville Dam as agricultural soil. Through testing for various compounds from carbon to arsenic to uranium and employing both biotic and abiotic processes, we will determine if the sediment contains toxins that would prevent its usage on products intended for human consumption.
Student: Delaney Sztraicher
Faculty: Elizabeth Hadley
Year Funded: 2014
Research: Modeling human arrival to South America and population density through the Holocene using archaeological data
Department: Biology
It is well established that the Earth is currently experiencing its sixth mass extinction due to the wide-ranging impacts of human activities, and these negative impacts on biodiversity are projected to further intensify under a growing population and changing global climate. To understand the role humans played in this past extinction, we will create a database of all available archaeological data from South America and create a metric for describing human population density at a given point in time and space.
Student: Kevin Baker& Meaghan Carley
Faculty: James Sweeney
Year Funded: 2014
Research: Counseling Energy Reduction: The Energy Reduction Motivational Interview
Department: Management Science and Engineering
As part of an ARPA-E cooperative agreement, we collected very high resolution, appliance specific electricity information in 30 local homes over a two-week period. While the ERMI allowed us to revisit the potential of face-to-face communication to change behavior when combined with home energy consumption over time and for many appliances, the MUIR intern(s) will perform the data analysis from this pilot study.
Student: Mark Carrington
Faculty: Jon Krosnick
Year Funded: 2014
Research: American Public Opinion About Climate Change
Department: Communication;& Political Science
In numerous surveys, our group has found that the vast majority of Americans are on the "green" side of the issue. But in recent surveys, we found that when Americans are asked to guess the opinions of Americans on the issue, people underestimate the prevalence of green opinions and underestimate the gap between Republicans and Democrats. This project will involve conducting content analysis and experiments to explore the impact of exposure to news stories on people's perceptions of public opinion.
Student: Olivia Cords
Faculty: Giulio De Leo
Year Funded: 2014
Research: Public Health and Disease Ecology: the Global Control of Schistosomiasis
Department: Biology
Schistosomiasis is a debilitating parasitic infection affecting more than 220 million people in the developing world, especially where dams and water projects have greatly expanded freshwater habitat for snails, the parasite’s intermediate hosts. We are investigating the viability and cost-effectiveness of a novel biological control approach based on the reintroduction of native crustacean predators (prawns) of snails in hotspots of disease transmission.
Student: Roberto Guzman
Faculty: Fiorenza Micheli
Year Funded: 2014
Research: Assessing the magnitude and ecological effects of the seastar die-off in the Lovers Point State Marine Reserve
Department: Biology
Between September-December 2013, mass mortality of several seastar species was documented throughout coastal California. The die-off, likely caused by an unknown viral or bacterial pathogen, has affected intertidal species inhabiting rocky shores and kelp forests, including Pisaster ochraceus, the ocher seastar. We will conduct surveys of rocky shore habitat within the LPSMR and nearby sites and repeat past surveys utilizing identical methodologies in order to compare data to past assessments and evaluate possible changes in abundance, species composition, and size structure of sea stars.
Student: Smriti Sridhar
Faculty: Sally Benson
Year Funded: 2014
Research: Environmental Sustainability of Solar Fuels
Department: Energy Resources Engineering
There is growing interest in making liquid or gaseous fuels from solar energy, either directly using photoelectrocatalysis or indirectly using a electrocatalysis. This research project will perform systems analysis to evaluate and compare the environmental sustainability of these technologies from three perspectives: net energy, water intensity, and material demands.
2013
Student: Adrian Berg
Faculty: Stephen Luby
Year Funded: 2013
Research: Sanitation, environmental fecal contamination, and child health
Department: Medicine
An empirical study to significantly advance understanding of fecal pathogen transmission and its association with child health will be conducted in rural Bangladesh. The proposed work will take advantage of an existing, large-scale, randomized intervention trial to draw inference about the effect of sanitation as a primary prevention measure, alone and in combination with secondary prevention measures such as water treatment and hand hygiene.
Student: Aldric Ulep
Faculty: Barton (Buzz) Thompson
Year Funded: 2013
Research: The interdisciplinary Water Energy Research Initiative
Department: Woods Institute for the Environment& Law School
This project is jointly sponsored by the Woods Institute and the Precourt Institute for Energy and brings together policy and technical research to advance integrated resource management, regulation, and policy formulation across the water and energy arenas. A key focus of the Initiative will be monitoring, and bringing technical and process innovation research to inform, the drafting of the California Global Warming Solutions Act 2020-50 Scoping Plan Update across mitigation and adaptation measures, and research investments, targeting the water-energy nexus.
Student: Amelia Farber
Faculty: Nicole Ardoin
Year Funded: 2013
Research: Social Ecological Approaches to PromotingEnvironmental and Stewardship Behavior: The Role of Environmental Education
Department: School of Education
This project will enhance ongoing research on environmental education programs. Specifically, we will examine motivations for and barriers to environmental behavior among a range of audiences and in varying settings; program evaluation and adaptive management in informal settings such as parks and museums; the use of social strategies by non-governmental organizations to engage individuals and communities in decision-making related to natural resource management; leadership and training programs in natural resources and conservation; and the impact of “green” buildings and the built environment on environmental attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors.
Student: Darien French-Owen
Faculty: Kenneth Schieve
Year Funded: 2013
Research: Economic Interests and Individual Climate Change Policy Preferences
Department: Political Science
The research question addressed in this project is what are the economic and political determinants of policy preferences about climate change policy and international climate change cooperation. The data used in the study will be original adult population surveys in France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Student: Gabriela Leslie
Faculty: Eric Lambin
Year Funded: 2013
Research: Enhancing Smallholder's Livelihoods Through High Quality Cacao Varieties
Department: Earth System Science
Cacao is one of the most widely traded commodities around the world, produced by millions of smallholders in the tropics, however, most of the value is added in consuming countries, leaving many farmers in poverty. This study aims at evaluating the effectiveness of the three models—mainstream, bean-to-bar, and differentiated-within-mainstream—in improving farmers’ livelihoods and protecting cacao’s diversity.
Student: Isabel Cardenas
Faculty: Rodolfo Dirzo
Year Funded: 2013
Research: Incidence of sudden oak death disease at the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve
Department: Biology
Sudden oak death (SOD) is the common name for a disease produced by the plant pathogen Phytophtora ramorum that kills oaks, tanoaks, and other species of trees in California and Oregon. Recent evidence indicates that P. ramorum has been found in bay laurel trees at the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve. The proposed research project is an analysis of SOD in bay laurels and oak trees at Jasper Ridge.
Student: Jaclyn Phi
Faculty: Giulio De Leo
Year Funded: 2013
Research: Assessing the environmental externalities of the extractive and non-extractive uses of ocean and coastal waters
Department: Biology
The concept of “environmental externality” is the cornerstone of any cost-benefit analysis; yet, the quantitative assessment of environmental external costs generated by the extractive and non-extractive uses of oceans and coastal areas, though rapidly growing since the publication of the Millennium Assessment in 2005, is still in its infancy. The goal of the present project is to analyze how the concept of “environmental externality” in the exploitation of marine resources is treated in the scientific literature and to derive information on how is included in current regulations, policies and management approaches to account for, reduce and, possibly, eliminate the negative effects of ocean use.
Student: Nicole Rodriguez
Faculty: Peter Vitousek
Year Funded: 2013
Research: Talk Story about Traditional Hawaiian Healing
Department: Biology
This project explores traditional healing in Native Hawaiian culture, examining the relevance of ancient values and traditions in today's society. Student will journey throughout the Hawaiian Islands, presenting stories from Native healers who share their experiences in seeking truth, wisdom, and health. These stories delve into fundamental issues such as identity, balance, and nature, while showing how cultural complexity can be rooted in simple universal truths.
Student: Lauren McCune
Faculty: Jon Krosnick
Year Funded: 2013
Research: American Public Opinion About Climate Change
Department: Communication;& Political Science
In numerous surveys, our group has found that the vast majority of Americans are on the "green" side of the issue. But in recent surveys, we found that when Americans are asked to guess the opinions of Americans on the issue, people underestimate the prevalence of green opinions and underestimate the gap between Republicans and Democrats. This project will involve conducting content analysis and experiments to explore the impact of exposure to news stories on people's perceptions of public opinion.
Student: Victoria Greenen
Faculty: Michael Tomz
Year Funded: 2013
Research: Is Corporate Environmentalism Profitable? Experimental Investigations of the Effects of Environmental Corporate Social Responsibility on Consumption, Employment and Political Activity
Department: Political Science
Firms engage in environmental corporate social responsibility (ECSR) when they go beyond the requirements of current environmental law. We are conducting experiments to study how ECSR affects three types of behavior in the mass public: consumption, employment, and political activity.
2012
Student: Alex Heaney
Faculty: Terry Root
Year Funded: 2012
Research: Emerging Influenza: The Role of Climate Change and Migratory Birds
Department: Woods Institute for the Environment
The overall research goal is to investigate the relationship between climate change and emerging influenza, using changes in birds as a connection between them. Wild migratory birds are the primary reservoir for influenza viruses and are known to infect domestic birds. One hypothesis that will be addressed is that spatial and temporal changes in wild birds have already and will continue to result in new contact occurring between wild and domestic birds. If true, this new contact has and will continue to broadening the number of infected domestic birds coming into contact with infected wild birds. Another hypothesis is that stresses, which can certainly lower the overall health of wild birds, will increase wild birds’ susceptibility to the influenza virus and also increase viral shedding. If true, wild birds would be circulating and likely transmitting a larger viral load in areas at the beginning, ending and along their migratory path.
Student: Belinda Tang
Faculty: Jenna Davis
Year Funded: 2012
Research: Reuse of Waste Stabilization Pond Treated Bio-solids in Uganda: Health Risks & Financial Gains
Department: Civil Environmental Engineering
This project explores the extent to which human excreta and bio-solids are reused for crop fertilization and the safety and cost- effectiveness of these practices. While preliminary work in Uganda demonstrates that small-scale farmers are using partially treated sludge for crop fertilization, an information gap still exists regarding the extent of these practices, current fertilizing techniques, and the potential economic gains resulting from the sale of the sludge. In collaboration with the National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC), this project aims to better understand the health risks and financial gains associated with the reuse of bio- solids.
Student: Claire Zabel
Faculty: Rob Dunbar
Year Funded: 2012
Research: Impacts of Ocean Acidification on Coral Reefs: Insights from Experiments at Palmyra Atoll
Department: Environmental Earth System Science
The oceans are currently experiencing both warming and increased acidification due to the effect of rising atmospheric CO2 levels. This project explores how these changes will affect the world’s low-lying coral atolls. Few actual measurements of organismal responses to ocean acidification are available; and fewer still from in-situ “natural” setting. Palmyra Atoll is uniquely situated in a setting that experiences large natural changes in seawater pCO2. In-situ field experiments will be used to measure actual rates of net community dissolution and precipitation of carbonate during the seasonal cycle that, at Palmyra Atoll, is accompanied by “natural” pH variability.
Student: Emma Broderick
Faculty: Nicole Ardoin
Year Funded: 2012
Research: Evaluation Research on Konawaena Place-Based Environmental Education, Program and Hula Show Project
Department: School of Education
This project involves the development of tools needed to evaluate two culturally grounded environmental education programs in Kona, Hawai’i. One is a place-based education program in a public middle school, and the second is a hula performance designed jointly by local community members and Rachelle Gould a Stanford PhD candidate. The project goal is to explore the changes that the educational programs might engender in the students’ interrelated cultural and environmental knowledge and attitudes. Emma will conduct the post-test and analyze the data with consultation with the community partner. The post-survey results will be used to design an interview instrument to explore themes, questions, and ideas emerging from the survey work.
Student: Esther Oh
Faculty: Larry Crowder
Year Funded: 2012
Research: Social Science Research in Hawaiian Coral Reef Fisheries
Department: Center for Ocean Solutions
This project explores how social networks and socio-cultural factors mediate nearshore fishing and gathering activities at the community level in Hawaii. Both quantitative and qualitative data will be collected to gain more insight into both the social and kinship fishing networks as well as the socio-cultural benefits of seafood consumption in these communities. Specifically, the project team will assess: 1) fish-flow, and 2) the benefits of seafood consumption.
Student: Jeanette Lim
Faculty: William Durham
Year Funded: 2012
Research: Perceptions of Environmental Degradation and Mitigation in Tambopata, Peru
Department: Anthropology
This project will examine local perceptions of environmental degradation and mitigation in the Tambopata region of Peru, and study how these perceptions differ between community members, tourists, and tourism employees along the Tampbopata River. Understanding the views and behaviors of different stakeholders in one of the most ecologically sensitive and important regions of the world will improve collaborative conservation efforts built upon both scientific and sociocultural knowledge. This is a particularly critical time for such research to be conducted as it will prove useful in creating an open forum during the transition of Posada Amazonas Lodge from its current joint ownership to 100% local ownership. This research will help coming changes in management reflect current stakeholder views.
Student: Jen Ang
Faculty: John Krosnick
Year Funded: 2012
Research: Public Attitudes on Global Warming
Department: Communication & Political Science
This project examines the potential impact of natural scientists straying beyond their own areas of expertise when making public statements about global warming. Specifically, the project team will test the hypothesis that when natural science experts make recommendations about what political processes would be implemented to address climate change, the scientists reduce their own apparent credibility in the eyes of the public, because the scientists are willing to make assertions in arenas in which they are not expert. Additionally, the team will simulate the 2012 presidential election by showing participants videos of President Obama and Mitt Romney talking about climate change, to gauge the likely impact of the issue on voting.
Student: Jordan Pratt
Faculty: Noah Diffenbaugh
Year Funded: 2012
Research: Effects of Large-Scale Solar Installations on Dust Mobilization and Air Quality
Department: Environmental Earth System Science
The goal of this project is to study the effects of large-scale solar projects on regional dust mobilization and air quality. To do this, the team will analyze aerosol product data from NASA's Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR) at annual and seasonal time intervals near fifteen photovoltaic and solar thermal stations ranging from 5-200MW (12-4,942 acres) in size. The stations are distributed over eight different countries and were chosen based on size, location and installation date; most of the installations are large-scale, took place in desert climates and were installed between 2006 and 2010. The project will also consider air quality measurements of particulate matter between 2.5 and 10 micrometers (PM10) from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) monitoring sites near and downwind from the project installations in the the U.S. The team will use monthly wind data from the NOAA's National Center for Atmospheric Prediction (NCEP) Global Reanalysis to select the stations downwind from the installations, and then perform statistical analysis on the data to identify any significant changes in dust and air quality.
Student: Natalie Luu
Faculty: Brian Knutson
Year Funded: 2012
Research: Adapting Neuroeconomics Principles to the Study of Environmental Decision-Making
Department: Psychology
This project utilizes behavioral and fMRI research methods to adapt neuroeconomics principles to the study of decision-making on environmental issues. Specifically, this project addresses two broad questions. First, can neuroimaging inform our understanding of how people route and process information in decision tasks on environmental issues? Improved understanding of the neural basis of environmental valuation can improve the design of educational and policy initiatives that foster long-term ecological planning. Second, can neuroimaging help formulate a predictive model of population-level behavior in environmental valuation decisions? With this understanding, the team hopes to build a predictive model which allows us to predict choice based purely on neural data, using a new fMRI data analysis technique in Knutson's lab called regularized regression.
2011
Student: Ernestine Fu
Faculty: Martin Fischer
Year Funded: 2011
Research: Global climate change and coastal infrastructure
Department: Civil and Environmental Engineering
This project focuses on the impacts of climate change on global seaports. Seaports require special attention because of their economic importance as essential links in supply chains, their locations in the heart of sensitive estuarine environments and their reliance on waterfront locations. The research includes conceptual and predictive models of the likely impact of sea level rise and associated storm surge on coastlines in general and ports specifically; the structures and designs needed for varying degrees of protection; the environmental impact of such structures and their the cost-value ratio. Ernestine has been developing three hurricane climate change scenarios for the seaports of Gulfport, Providence, and Kingston. The scenarios consider hurricane impacts, the potential range of storm surge and statistics on the likelihood of Category 5 hurricane events. She will develop the scenarios during the summer by collecting field data at the three case study ports. By analyzing the nature and impact of uncertain local conditions and communicating with stakeholders, Ernestine will expand her scenarios to shape policy. This project will also allow her to develop a senior honors thesis on the impact of global climate change on coastal infrastructure.
Student: Felicia King
Faculty: Dmitri Petrov
Year Funded: 2011
Research: Effect of elevational clines on local climate adaptation in D. melanogaster
Department: Biology
The study of adaptation is at the heart of evolutionary biology. Nevertheless, after more than a century of rigorous empirical and theoretical developments, we still lack a comprehensive view of the mode and tempo of adaptive evolution. The migration of the fruit fly species Drosophila melanogaster from tropical Africa to more temperate climates is an excellent system for the study of adaptation. D. melanogaster has only recently colonized temperate climates, yet displays a well characterized set of traits and behaviors that promote survival under the stresses of winter. This aim of this project is to study the adaptation of D. melanogaster to temperate climates by investigating whether climate-adaptive traits and loci that are known to vary latitudinally along the East Coast of North America also vary in a similar faction along an elevational transect from the Central Valley up into the Sierra Nevada through one growing season (March to November). We will test the hypothesis that “Northernly” winter-adaptive genes and phenotypes will vary linearly with elevation and through the season, being most prevalent at high elevation and early in the growing season. Investigating whether or not such patterns exists will significantly contribute to understanding the mode and tempo of adaptation in D. melanogaster and will fill fundamental gaps in our knowledge of the ecology of the species.
Student: Jessica Eastling
Faculty: Nicole Ardoin
Year Funded: 2011
Research: Non-monetary consideration in land-use decision analysis
Department: Education
Cultural Ecosystem Services (CES), often referred to as “non-use” values, are a key component of ecosystem management. These services are defined as “non-material benefits people obtain from ecosystems through spiritual enrichment, cognitive development, reflection, recreation and aesthetic experience.” However, the intangible and often unprofitable nature of CES makes it difficult to incorporate into the standard decision process of free market tradeoffs. This project will assess individual landholder valuation of CES in land-use decisions to evaluate how their interpretations are being expressed in actual practice. Through studying the relationships between CES valuation and land-use, a clearer understanding of landholders’ decision-making can be developed to promote practices that ensure conservation of the land, and thus CES provided by the land.
Student: Kimberly Pham
Faculty: Chris Field
Year Funded: 2011
Research: Physiological mechanisms of climate-induced forest mortality
Department: Biology and Environmental Earth System Science
Trembling aspen is the most widespread tree species in North America. A recent and severe aspen mortality, termed Sudden Aspen Decline (SAD), has swept across Colorado, several other western states and parts of Canada. This project will attempt to answer how hydraulic failure builds up over multiple years in dying aspen trees, leading to forest mortality - specifically, whether changes in fine roots or stem properties mediate multiyear mortality pathways. Kimberly will measure several key plant physiological characteristics in aspen stands in the San Juan National Forest in southwest Colorado. Using a combination of pressurized water and sieves, she will extract fine root matter from the tree cores to assess if mortality of fine roots is occurring, if root mortality leads or lags canopy mortality and if it can build up over many years, potentially driving hydraulic failure. The combination of observational data about root density, physiological data of xylem tensions, and laboratory examinations of these tissues will provides a rigorous test of the long-term effects and processes of the hydraulic failure hypothesis.
Student: Lucia Hennelly
Faculty: Peter Vitousek
Year Funded: 2011
Research: Translating traditional ecological knowledge to modern environmental frameworks: Youth engagement in community-based natural resource management in Ha‘ena, Kaua‘i
Department: Biology
The aims and scope of this research project touch on Lucia’s three deepest passions: community organizing, active engagement of youth and environmental activism. In this project, she will examine the specific motivations that lead young people to become involved in the complex process of developing a co-management partnership. Her work will be grounded in the social, ecological, cultural and historical contexts surrounding Ha‘ena, with the aim of drawing lessons from this community that can be applied to engaging youth in similar collaborations across varying contexts.
Student: Nick Cariello
Faculty: Jenna Davis
Year Funded: 2011
Research: Rural water supply, nutrition and health in rural Mozambique
Department: Civil and Environmental Engineering
The government of Mozambique is installing deep boreholes with hand pumps in several hundred rural communities of Nampula Province. Our team will be researching the impacts of this intervention, and will design and carry out a baseline survey in Nampula this summer. The impacts of the intervention will be quantified in terms of increases in quantity and quality of water, rates of school enrollment, and increased income and health improvements. Nick will investigate the process by which water supply projects are implemented in Mozambique, and how they impact communities. In addition to developing Portuguese language skills, he will help design and code data collection instruments for use in household surveys, train the Mozambican field teams and support in-country survey activities.
Student: Sabina Perkins
Faculty: Firoenza Michel
Year Funded: 2011
Research: Assessing the impacts of ocean acidification in natural CO2 vents
Department: Biology
Increased anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) is predicted to be a major driver of environmental change in the coming century. The oceans absorb a large proportion of CO2 from the atmosphere, which causes a reduction in seawater pH and carbonate ion concentration in a process called ocean acidification. Ocean acidification is predicted to impact nearly all areas of the ocean and a wide range of species. Organisms that build calcareous structures are particularly sensitive and have shown reduced calcification, growth and survival to experimental CO2 enrichment. However, laboratory experiments have also shown wide variation in how marine organisms cope with low pH. It is critical to our understanding of responses and adaptation to acidification that we expand these laboratory studies to examine responses to long-term exposure under natural conditions. This project asks the important question of how marine organisms integrate the physiological effects of ocean acidification over time by quantifying potential differences in energy allocation between marine snails collected in extremely acidic waters in Ischia, Italy, and nearby ambient conditions by comparing their shell, reproductive tissue and somatic tissue mass. We hypothesize and that marine gastropods from the vents will have less energy for somatic growth and reproduction due to the energy demands for maintenance of calcification in acidified conditions. The proposed research is novel, because many of the organisms have been exposed to acidified waters throughout their life spans. The results from this study will provide insights on the physiological impacts of ocean acidification on a marine snail, and some of the first examples of how marine organisms integrate the effects of ocean acidification over time.
Student: Yibai Shu
Faculty: Jon Krosnick
Year Funded: 2011
Research: The impact of news media coverage of climate change on American public opinion
Department: Communication and Political Science
During the last 10 years, we have conducted a series of national surveys tracking American public opinion on issues related to climate change. And during this time, Americans have come to accept the views of mainstream scientists on many relevant issues. At at the same time, there has been a growing split between Republicans and Democrats on this issue. While Democrats have been moving steadily in the direction of the views of mainstream scientists, Republicans have not manifested any notable changes in this direction. Why has this gap grown? To answer this question, we will do an in-depth content analysis of news media coverage of climate change, randomly selecting a set of major news media stories on the issue. Students will develop a set of procedures for implementing the content analysis, carry it out, evaluate the reliability of their results and conduct statistical analyses of their data.
2010
Student: Elif Tasar
Faculty: Page Chamberlain
Year Funded: 2010
Research: Reconstructing terrestrial latitudinal temperature gradients of a high CO2 Earth - A test of GCM models
Department: Environmental Earth Systems Science
One of the most useful techniques in predicting how the Earth?s climate will change in the future involves studying how it has changed in the past through the use of climate proxies. Traditionally, it has been thought that the Eocene epoch (55-34 Mya) was characterized by shallow latitudinal temperature gradients with significantly warmer poles and similar tropics compared to modern temperatures. However, climate models are at a loss to explain these shallow temperature gradients; the high concentrations of greenhouse gases needed to increase high latitude temperatures should also increase tropical temperatures. To date, no realistic feedback mechanism or theoretical ?thermostat? has been proposed that will stabilize tropical temperatures despite high greenhouse gas concentrations. This has one of two major implications. (1) Current models do not accurately represent climate feedback mechanisms such as latent heat transport, polar stratospheric cloud formation, or biological influences that would act as a thermostat to stabilize tropical temperatures while warming the poles. (2) Current interpretations of climate proxies have underestimated Eocene tropical temperatures and latitudinal temperature gradients. As such, this project will reconstruct Eocene latitudinal gradients using stable isotopic techniques.
Student: Evelyn Danforth
Faculty: Richard White
Year Funded: 2010
Research: Sustainable Grass-fed Livestock and Grassland Ecosystems
Department: History in conjunction with the Lane Center for the Study of the American West
The research involves compiling data and analyzing historical trends in Western livestock production methods in order to put the growing grass-fed production of beef, lamb, and bison into a larger historical and regional context. Danforth is mapping the data to gain a spatial understanding of the impact of grass-fed livestock on western rangelands. Her hypothesis is that while grass-fed, natural, and organic modes of production do not yet have a significant impact on overall meat production in the United States, they are beginning to have a significant impact on the management and health of grassland ecosystems in the West. Danforth?s research will examine to what extent alternative livestock production methods are economically viable in different regions of the West, which may depend on economies of scale, butchering, and distribution arrangements, and payments for ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration. Danforth will also explore public land management institutions that provide incentives and barriers for these growing alternative modes of production. Her goal is to analyze the growth of these modes of production and their impact on the land, and predict what kind of growth will they see in the decade to come. Her end product will be a written report, if appropriate for peer-reviewed publication, and an interactive visualization to be developed with collaborators at the Lane Center demonstrating the spatial and temporal evolution of alternative livestock production that will be published online in the Center?s Rural West Project, and shared with media organizations.
Student: Helen Chen
Faculty: Peter Vitousek
Year Funded: 2010
Research: Streamwater Chemistry and Land Use on Kauai, Hawaii
Department: Biology/First Nations Futures Program
The student will sample streams that drain watersheds with contrasting land uses on the north shore of Kauai, Hawaii, and analyze those samples for a suite of major elements. The project is designed to relate land use - especially agriculture, housing, and golf courses - to water quality and ultimately to coastal marine resources. The intern will also work in collaboration with Mehana Vaughan, an E-IPER student who is from the area and who will be the intern's on-site mentor.
Student: Joseph Burg
Faculty: David Kennedy
Year Funded: 2010
Research: Water in the West
Department: History in conjunction with the Lane Center for the Study of the American West
This research project seeks to explore and jump start the use of data gathering, analysis, visualization, and mapping into the Joint Program on Water in the West. It also takes advantage of a collaboration between the Center and Sunset Magazine. Burg will analyze the survey and compare the results to surveys conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California, the Gallup Poll, and a survey that is currently being conducted with Bay Area water managers by Richard Luthy?s group. Burg will then provide the analysis, along with compelling ideas for visualizing the data online and in the magazine, and connect them to other research results on the web sites of the Bill Lane Center for the American West and the Woods Institute. Burg will also be closely involved in the Water in the West?s research on metrics and performance measurement systems for moving toward sustainability in California and the West. He will work with the team, led by Jon Christensen, which will be gathering available data, identifying data gaps, and prototyping a "dashboard" for visualizing and mapping actionable data for citizens, decision makers, policymakers, and journalists.
Student: Kate Lowry
Faculty: Kevin Arrigo
Year Funded: 2010
Research: Impacts of Climate on Ecosystems and Chemistry of the Arctic Pacific Environment (ICESCAPE)
Department: Environmental Earth Systems Science
Research will include preparation beforehand and research aboard the icebreaker USCGC Healy from June 15- July 22, 2010. The goals of the Arctic cruise are to understand the physics, optics, biology, and biogeochemistry of the surface ocean and sea ice and how these might be responding to recent losses in sea ice cover. Changes in biological productivity in Arctic waters have been surprisingly large over the last decade and we would like to develop tools to be able to detect these changes using space-based satellite sensors. We will deploy optical instrumentation from a small boat at each station and also do surveys of the temperature, salinity, and water properties using instrumentation on board the Healy. In addition, we will sample sea ice where possible, focusing on its optical properties and its ability to harbor microorganisms that are important to the Arctic marine food web.
Student: Lucas Janson
Faculty: Bala Rajaratnam
Year Funded: 2010
Research: Uncertainty quantification of past climate reconstructions and future climate change forecasts
Department: Statistics
Despite the natural and obvious need for uncertainty quantification of past climate reconstructions and future climate change forecasts, a transparent and comprehensive methodology is not available in the literature. There is therefore an urgent need for a cross-disciplinary approach using hard scientific tools from the environmental sciences, statistics, and physics. This research project has two main objectives. First to develop statistical methods for the uncertainty quantification of past climate reconstructions. Second to develop physics and statistical methods for introducing randomness in general circulation models in order to be able to carry out uncertainty quantification of climate change forecasts.
Student: Sakshi Agarwal
Faculty: David Lobell
Year Funded: 2010
Research: Energy use in food systems
Department: Environmental Earth Systems Science/Woods Institute for the Environment
The goal of this research is to develop estimates of energy inputs into food production, transport, retail, and consumption, and to identify major opportunities to reduce fossil energy use in food. One outcome will be easily understood graphics of energy flows into agriculture, similar to GCEP exergy diagrams, and another will be publicly accessible databases to query or add numbers. This is an interdisciplinary project between food experts in FSE and energy experts in Precourt Institute for Energy.
Student: Stacey Aguilera
Faculty: Stephen Palumbi
Year Funded: 2010
Research: Variation of SNPs in PMCA Genes of Lottia gigantea from an Upwelling Acidic Monterey Bay Population Compared With a Non-upwelling Santa Barbara Population
Department: Biological Sciences/Hopkins Marine Station
This study intends on discovering if one of the common intertidal animals of the California coast, the limpet Lottia gigantea, varies in its genetic makeup of the plasma membrane Ca2+ ATPase (PMCA) in relation to the acidity of its environment. The PMCA protein functions in the calcification process of many organisms and in limpets, forms its protective shell. The goal is to find unique SNPs (single-nucleotide polymorphisms) of the DNA sequence of the Monterey population that are not found in the Santa Barbara population where upwelling does not affect pH severely. Answering this question of how the PMCA genes differ between a population of a higher acidic environment and a population of a lower acidic environment will lead to understanding how acidic environments influence their inhabitants now, as well as in the future when the majority of the ocean becomes an acidic environment.
2009
Student: Ana Diaz-Hernandez
Faculty: Jenna Davis
Year Funded: 2009
Research: Evaluating the Sustainability of Multiple-Use Water Services in Developing Countries
Student: Andrew Rominger
Faculty: Mike Mastrandrea
Year Funded: 2009
Research: California Plant Ranges with 20th Century Climate Change
Student: Anne Lindseth
Faculty: Nicole Ardoin
Year Funded: 2009
Research: Bringing Buildings to Life
Student: Annika Ozinskas
Faculty: Rodolfo Dirzo/Don Kennedy
Year Funded: 2009
Research: Fauna Forever
Student: Bryce Golden-Chu
Faculty: Don Kennedy
Year Funded: 2009
Research: Climate Change and Conflict: What are the links and where is the evidence?
Student: Chris Seifert
Faculty: David Lobell
Year Funded: 2009
Research: Measuring Soil-Climate Interactions
Student: Justin Costa-Roberts
Faculty: Terry Carl
Year Funded: 2009
Research: The Paradox of Plenty the Environment and Conflict
Student: Kaitlan Halady and Hiyabel Tewoldemedhin
Faculty: Jon Krosnick
Year Funded: 2009
Research: The Impact of News Media Coverage of Climate Change on American Public Opinion
Student: Lee Anderegg
Faculty: Chris Field
Year Funded: 2009
Research: Sudden Aspen Decline: Detecting regeneration of climate-induced forest mortality in Colorado
Student: Leigh Hammel
Faculty: Steve Gorelick
Year Funded: 2009
Research: Remote Sensing of Salt-Marsh Vegetation Spacial Patterns
Student: Lindley Mease
Faculty: Gretchen Daily
Year Funded: 2009
Research: Ecological and Socio-cultural Services from Reforestation in Montane Hawai'i
Student: Sabine Bergmann
Faculty: Buzz Thompson
Year Funded: 2009
Research: Considering Ecosystem Service Valuation as a Framework for Environmental Impact Statements
