REU Site: Place-based Conservation Science in Hawaiian Ecosystems

这项授予夏威夷大学希洛分校的REU SITE奖项将在2018-2020年夏季期间支持10名学生进行为期10周的培训。REU计划将重点放在退化生态系统中的热带生态研究上。实习生将参与专业发展、实地考察和外展，参加该州年度保护科学会议，并准备口头报告和期末论文。这项工作预计将通过密集的写作培训、以解决方案为导向的研究主题和支持性的计划结构，为下一代环境问题解决者激发研究生涯。该方案重点关注退化生态系统的健康和恢复，调查退化的空间扩散情况以及有弹性的社区的生态系统功能。主要的重点将是吸引对环境充满热情的学生，并培养他们在这一领域实现积极变化和追求可行职业的信心、技能和能力。预计总共有30名学生，主要是代表不足的少数族裔学生(特别是夏威夷原住民和太平洋岛民)、第一代大学生，以及几乎没有研究经验的学生，将与不同的教师导师团队合作，开展专注于退化景观生态的项目。学生将学习研究是如何进行的，并在内部研讨会和科学会议上展示他们的工作结果。由生物基础设施部资助的所有REU站点项目使用的通用网络评估工具将用于确定培训计划的有效性以及多种内部方法。项目结束后，将对学生进行跟踪，以确定他们的职业道路。学生将被要求回复通过NSF报告系统发送的自动电子邮件。有关该计划的更多信息，请访问http://hilo.hawaii.edu/uhintern，或联系PI(Ostertag博士邮箱：Ostertag@hawai.edu)、联合PI(Puniwai-Ganoot博士邮箱：npuniwai@hawai.edu)或项目协调人(Linnea HEU和Rita Miller邮箱：uhintern@hawai.edu)。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This REU Site award to University of Hawaii at Hilo, located in Hilo, HI, will support the training of 10 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2018-2020. The REU program places primary emphasis on tropical ecological research in degraded ecosystems. Interns will participate in professional development, field trips, and outreach, attend the State's annual conservation science conference, and prepare an oral presentation and final paper. This work is expected to spark the research careers for the next generation of environmental problem-solvers through intensive writing training, solution-oriented research topics, and a supportive program structure. The program concentrates on the health and restoration of degraded ecosystems by investigating the spatial spread of degradation as well as ecosystem functioning of resilient communities. The primary focus will be on attracting students with a passion for the environment and nurturing the confidence, skill set and ability to effect positive change and pursue a viable career in this field. It is anticipated that a total of 30 students, primarily underrepresented minority students (Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander in particular), first-generation college students, and students with little to no research experience, will work with a diverse team of faculty mentors on projects focused on the ecology of degraded landscapes. Students will learn how research is conducted, and present the results of their work at an internal symposium as well as at scientific conferences.A common web-based assessment tool used by all REU Site programs funded by the Division of Biological Infrastructure will be used to determine the effectiveness of the training program as well as multiple internal methods. Students will be tracked after the program in order to determine their career paths. Students will be asked to respond to an automatic email sent via the NSF reporting system. More information about the program is available by visiting http://hilo.hawaii.edu/uhintern, or by contacting the PI (Dr. Ostertag at ostertag@hawaii.edu), co-PI (Dr. Puniwai-Ganoot at npuniwai@hawaii.edu), or project coordinators (Linnea Heu and Rita Miller at uhintern@hawaii.edu).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.