REU Site: Interdisciplinary Problem Solving in Human Dominated Wetland Ecosystems

这个新的REU网站强调让代表性不足的群体、妇女和聋人/重听学生参与跨学科的地球系统研究，为解决复杂的环境问题建立合作和沟通技巧。我们将以湿地恢复为视角，每年夏天让10名学生亲身体验科学与社会之间的互动，从而塑造生态系统的功能和服务。湿地单位面积的价值比其他所有生态系统都高，因为它们提供了许多生态系统服务。学生的研究将为认识到城市景观中生态系统恢复的固有局限性的现实管理选择提供建议。该项目的一个核心组成部分是培训本科生进行科学传播，然后在许多环境中传播环境研究，包括青年项目、社区活动和公民科学家。这既扩大了公众对湿地生态系统服务的认识，又提高了学生对STEM概念知识的信心和对多样性挑战的认识。淡水湿地具有固碳、去除营养物质和提供栖息地等功能，但也是温室气体的重要来源。随着景观的快速城市化，这些生态系统越来越受到复杂环境力量（土地利用变化、污染、物种入侵、气候变化等）的困扰，需要用跨学科的方法来解决，考虑到社会学的相互作用和景观异质性。这个新的REU站点的研究项目将扩大对人造和天然城市湿地的理解，学生们积极参与研究集群，包括以下方法：(i)生物地球化学和生态学，（ii）社会学反馈，（iii）地理空间模式和尺度。将组建跨学科团队，解决以下问题：(1)外在和内在驱动因素与生态系统结构和功能之间的关系；(2)人工湿地中“自上而下”与“自下而上”控制生态系统功能和恢复成功的作用；(3)评估和衡量小型异质湿地生态系统结构和功能的效用和局限性。该计划还将包括针对专业发展关键领域的研讨会，并让学生接触跨学科的环境科学工具。参与者将通过一系列交流和外联活动向科学家和非科学家传播他们的研究。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识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 new REU Site emphasizes engaging underrepresented groups, women, and deaf/hard of hearing students in interdisciplinary earth systems research that builds collaboration and communication skills for solving complex environmental problems. We will use wetland restoration as a lens through which 10 students per summer can get hands-on experience with the interaction between science and society that shapes ecosystem functions and services. Wetlands are more valuable per unit area than all other ecosystems because of the numerous ecosystem services they provide. Student research will provide recommendations for realistic management options that recognize the inherent limitations of ecosystem restoration within an urban landscape. A core component of this program is training undergraduates in science communication and then disseminating environmental research in a number of settings, including youth programs, community events and to citizen scientists. This both expands public awareness of wetland ecosystem services and improves student confidence in their conceptual knowledge and awareness of diversity challenges in STEM.Freshwater wetlands are valued for services that include carbon sequestration, nutrient removal and habitat provisioning, but are also significant sources of greenhouse gases. As landscapes rapidly urbanize these ecosystems are increasingly beset by complex environmental forces (land-use change, pollution, species invasion, climate change, etc…) that need to be addressed with interdisciplinary approaches that consider sociological interactions and landscape heterogeneity. Research projects in this new REU Site will expand understanding of created and natural urban wetlands, with students actively engaged in research clusters that include the following approaches: (i) biogeochemistry and ecology, (ii) sociological feedbacks, and (iii) geospatial patterns and scaling. Interdisciplinary teams will be assembled that address questions that include: (1) the relationships between extrinsic and intrinsic drivers and ecosystem structure and function, (2) the role of ‘top-down’ vs. ‘bottom-up’ control of ecosystem function and restoration success in constructed wetlands, and (3) the utility and limits of assessing and scaling ecosystem structure and function in small, heterogenous wetlands. The program will also include workshops that target key areas of professional development and expose students to interdisciplinary environmental science tools. Participants will disseminate their research to scientists and non-scientists through a series of communication and outreach activities.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.