Undergraduate Research into the Cultural, Economic and Ecological Significance of Church Forests in South Gondar, Ethiopia

-------------摘要：这是一个国际REU网站，为来自不同背景的8名本科生提供了一个机会，对埃塞俄比亚教堂森林的文化、经济和生态作用进行跨学科研究。在拟议的为期八周的REU课程中，学生们将在科尔比学院接受社会调查研究、利用地理信息系统（GIS）进行空间分析、生态领域方法以及书面和口头交流等方面的培训。然后，他们前往埃塞俄比亚的南贡达尔，在那里与来自科尔比学院、北卡罗来纳州立大学和当地机构的导师密切合作，开展和分享他们的原创研究。知识价值：教堂森林是埃塞俄比亚东正教教堂周围的非洲山区森林。教会领袖和社区将教堂森林作为宗教圣地保存下来，在埃塞俄比亚的许多地方，教堂森林是仅存的土著森林。从制度的角度来看，教堂森林显示了宗教机构等非国家行为体如何在保护中发挥重要作用。从生态学的角度来看，教堂森林是埃塞俄比亚日益消失的生物多样性的重要保护区。“外人”很少被允许进入教会森林，但经过多年在埃塞俄比亚的推广努力，北卡罗来纳自然科学博物馆的梅格·洛曼博士与教会领袖签署了一份进入教会森林和合作的谅解备忘录。与教师导师和埃塞俄比亚合作者Alemayehu Wassie博士密切合作，拟议中的REU站点的学生积极参与原始研究的设计和实施，包括地理信息系统分析和社区调查，研究教堂森林的文化和经济价值；人类活动对教堂森林生物多样性和生态系统服务影响的生态学研究。更广泛的影响：美国的领导作用对扭转低收入国家环境恶化的全球努力的成功至关重要。拟议的REU站点旨在激发全球对热带森林保护的兴趣，同时也向埃塞俄比亚现有的保护机构学习和加强。研究结果将通过学术和教会社区利益相关者的会议在埃塞俄比亚境内分享，并通过一个网站、在经济学、生态学和跨学科期刊上发表学生作品以及学生出席会议在国际上分享。此外，该计划使学生接触到独特的文化和教育体验，同时为他们提供在安全和支持的REU环境中进行前沿社会和生态研究的机会。这个REU网站以社区大学生、女性、低收入学生和代表性不足的群体为重点，为能够从多个角度对现实世界问题进行批判性和同情心思考的学者和领导人的更加多样化和知情的机构奠定了基础。该项目由国际科学与工程组织（ISE）和美国国家科学基金会（NSF）刺激竞争性研究实验项目办公室（EPSCoR）共同资助。此外，它还被指定为RUI（本科院校研究）项目。

-------------ABSTRACT This is an international REU Site to provide eight undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds an opportunity to conduct interdisciplinary research on the cultural, economic and ecological roles of church forests in Ethiopia. Under the proposed eight-week REU students receive training at Colby College in social survey research, spatial analysis using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), ecological field methods, and written and oral communication. They then travel to South Gondar, Ethiopia where they work closely with mentors from Colby College, North Carolina State University, and local institutions to conduct and share their original research.Intellectual Merit:Church forests are patches of Afromontane forest surrounding Ethiopian Orthodox churches. Preserved by church leaders and communities as religious sanctuaries, church forests are, in many parts of Ethiopia, the only indigenous forests left. From an institutional perspective, church forests show how non-state actors such as religious institutions can play major roles in conservation. From an ecological perspective, church forests are crucial reserves for Ethiopia's vanishing biodiversity. "Outsiders" are rarely allowed into church forests, but after years of outreach efforts in Ethiopia, Dr. Meg Lowman of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences has a Memorandum of Understanding for access to the church forests and cooperation with church leaders. Working closely with faculty mentors and Ethiopian collaborator Dr. Alemayehu Wassie, students at the proposed REU Site actively contribute to the design and implementation of original research including GIS analyses and community surveys examining cultural and economic values of church forests; and ecological studies of human impacts on church forest biodiversity and ecosystem services.Broader Impacts:The leadership of the U.S. is critical to the success of global efforts to reverse environmental degradation in low-income countries. The proposed REU Site is designed to spark global interest in the conservation of tropical forests, but also to learn from and strengthen existing conservation institutions in Ethiopia. Study results will be shared within Ethiopia through meetings of academic and church community stakeholders, and internationally through a website, publication of student work in economics, ecology and interdisciplinary journals, and student attendance at conferences. In addition, the program exposes students to a unique cultural and educational experience, while providing them an opportunity to conduct cutting-edge social and ecological research in a safe and supportive REU setting. With a focus on community college students, women, low-income students and under-represented groups, this REU Site establishes the foundations for a more diverse and informed body of scholars and leaders able to think critically and compassionately about real-world problems from multiple perspectives.This project is co-funded by the International Science and Engineering (ISE) organization and also the Office of Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) at the NSF. In addition, it is designated as an RUI (Research in Undergraduate Institutions) project.