La Selva Biological Station: Integration of Research and Training in a Changing Tropical Ecosystem

该奖项为哥斯达黎加的La Selva野外观测站的改进和运营提供部分支持，该观测站是热带研究组织（OTS）在哥斯达黎加拥有和运营的三个观测站之一，OTS是一个由美国、哥斯达黎加、秘鲁和澳大利亚的60多所大学和研究机构组成的非营利性联盟。La Selva站位于哥斯达黎加东北部，占地1515公顷的经典低地热带雨林，毗邻Braulio Carrillo国家公园。这使得车站可以从La Selva保护区的近海平面到公园内的Barba火山山顶（2,906米）进入受保护的森林。La Selva是新热带地区研究效率最高的两个主要野外研究站之一，也是学生参与最多的野外研究站。仅2005年一年，国际空间站的用户访问量就超过了33,000天，开展了150个研究项目、110门大学课程和120篇科学出版物。每年，来自美国的100多所大学在拉塞尔瓦开设课程，近2000名学生参观该站。La Selva的参考书目目前有近3000篇参考文献，其中包括260篇硕士和博士论文。这些出版物中有900种是pdf格式的，还有几千篇关于热带生物学一般主题的参考文献。拉塞尔瓦的教育项目的基石是让学生有机会在热带地区进行实地的批判性思维。自1999年以来，La Selva一直积极寻求接触更多来自服务不足和代表性不足群体的学生。为了解决新出现的科学问题，并促进广泛的研究人员及其在该站工作的项目，La Selva将继续改进多用户平台，提供高质量的服务、现代化的设施、保存完好的小径、电子连接和先进的实验室设备。

This award provides partial support for the improvement and operation of the La Selva field station in Costa Rica, one of three stations in Costa Rica owned and operated by the Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS), a U.S. nonprofit consortium of 60 plus universities and research institutions in the United States, Costa Rica, Peru and Australia. The La Selva station encompasses 1,515 hectares of classic lowland tropical rain forest in northeastern Costa Rica where it adjoins Braulio Carrillo National Park. This allows the station to offer access to protected forests from near sea level within the La Selva reserve to the summit of Barba Volcano (2,906 m) within the park. La Selva is one of the two major field stations in the neotropics in research productivity and the top field station in student participation. In 2005 alone, the station logged over 33,000 user days of visitation, 150 research projects, 110 college courses, and 120 scientific publications. Every year more than 100 college courses from the U.S. run programs at La Selva and nearly 2,000 students visit the station. The La Selva bibliography currently boasts nearly 3,000 references, including 260 Masters and Ph.D. theses. Nine hundred of these publications are available as pdf files as are several thousand references on general themes in tropical biology. The cornerstone of education programs at La Selva has been the opportunity for students to engage in field-based, critical thinking in the tropics. Since 1999, La Selva has aggressively sought to reach more students from under-served and under-represented groups. In order to address emerging scientific issues as well as facilitate a broad range of researchers and their projects working at the station, La Selva will continue to improve the multi-user platform that provides quality services, modern facilities, well-kept trails, electronic connectivity, and advanced laboratory equipment.