IRES: Collaborative Research: US - Costa Rica International Research Experience for Students: Tropical Ecology Mentorship Program of Southern California

该奖项支持西方学院的Elizabeth Braker和圣地亚哥大学的Terrence P. McGlynn在哥斯达黎加组织一个以热带生态学为主题的国际学生研究经验（IRES）项目。美国调查人员将与拉塞尔瓦生物站的哈维尔·埃斯佩莱塔协调合作研究工作。这项活动的目标是培养来自代表性不足群体的有才华的学生成为具有国际环境经验的野外生态学家。为了实现这一目标，三位高级研究员每年将指导四名本科生进行长期的热带野外研究项目。本科生将首先在热带雨林野外研究站进行研究，然后他们将在全年的指导下继续在本国机构进行研究。该提案的广泛影响包括促进国际研究合作，为未被充分代表的群体的本科生创建科学指导，为本科生提供面向生态研究的广泛实地经验，并将主要本科院校的本科生带入与研究生，博士后研究人员和教师一起活跃的研究环境。该项目将促进美国和哥斯达黎加科学家之间的初步合作，并加强哥斯达黎加的pi正在进行的研究项目。

This award supports Elizabeth Braker of Occidental College and Terrence P. McGlynn of the University of San Diego to organize an International Research Experience for Students (IRES) program in Costa Rica on the topic of tropical ecology. The U.S. investigators will coordinate collaborative research efforts with Javier Espeleta at the La Selva Biological Station. The goal of this activity is to train talented students from underrepresented groups to become field ecologists with experience in international settings. To accomplish this goal the three senior investigators will mentor four undergraduates each year in long-term tropical-field research projects. Undergraduate students first will conduct research at the tropical rain forest field station, and then they will continue their research at their home institutions in a year-round mentorship.The broader impacts of the proposal include the promotion of international research collaborations, the creation of mentorships in the sciences for undergraduates of underrepresented groups, extensive field experiences for undergraduates oriented towards ecological research, and bringing undergraduates from primarily undergraduate institutions into an active research environment with graduate students, postdoctoral researchers and faculty. The project will foster a nascent collaboration between U.S. and Costa Rican scientists and reinforce ongoing research projects of the PIs in Costa Rica.