RaMP: Exploration of Variation across Levels of Organization in a CHANGEable World: Fostering CHANGE through Research in a Community of Practice

Change计划将为毕业后的参与者提供有指导的研究体验，他们中的许多人将来自传统上在生命科学中代表性较低的群体。学员将参与生物层面(例如，分子、细胞、组织、整个生物体、种群)的研究项目，探索有机体如何应对快速变化的环境。必须培养未来几代生物学家，使其能够轻松地在不同的生物层面上工作和合作，为未来的发现建立能力。变革网络包括来自学术界、一个非政府组织、政府机构和工业界的各种专家，以及侧重于加强受训人员职业发展的网络成员。Change将招聘不同背景的毕业生，以便根据几个与地理相关的主题扩大对科学研究的参与；不同的伙伴关系机构(包括部落学院)也将受益于这一进程。大多数生物体都会对全年可预测的环境变化做出反应。然而，人为影响导致不可预测的扰动增加，并改变了以前可预测的每日和季节变化的时间和发生。虽然同一物种的一些个体和种群正在适应，但其他人可能不会，越来越多的人认识到，全面了解这种适应性的差异需要综合的方法。变化计划参与者进行的有指导的研究将确定健壮性和韧性的基本属性，使某些种群或物种能够持续应对快速的环境变化。这项研究将为以下日益相关的问题提供洞察力：(1)随着气候变化，变化的能力是什么？(2)关键水平或组织的变化是否能够对未来的变化做出反应？(3)什么反应能够实现适应性变化？Change计划将采用基于证据的实践来创建实践社区，并进行有目的的指导，以实现支持性的、个性化的学习和研究环境。通过参与变化计划，参与者将准备成为一个农村EPSCoR州的领导人，并有能力解决基本的生物问题，同时参与对不断变化的星球上中西部地区具有生物重要性的问题。变革计划的一个独特目标是系统地发展和传播一种指导毕业后学生的循证模式。通过这种方式，我们的网络将加强国家努力，建立更涵盖不同人群的计划。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The CHANGE program will provide mentored research experiences for post-baccalaureate participants, many of whom will be from groups traditionally underrepresented in the Life Sciences. Mentees will engage in research projects across biological levels (e.g., molecules, cells, tissues, whole organisms, populations) exploring how organisms respond to rapidly changing environments. It is imperative to train future generations of biologists to be able to easily work and collaborate across different biological levels to build capacity for future discovery. The CHANGE network includes diverse experts from academia, a non-governmental organization, government agencies and industry, as well as network members focused on enhancing professional development of trainees. CHANGE will recruit post-baccalaureates from diverse backgrounds in order to broaden participation in scientific research according to several geographically relevant themes; diverse partnering institutions (including tribal colleges) will also benefit from this process. Most organisms respond to predictable environmental changes across the day and year. However, anthropogenic influences have led to an increase in unpredictable perturbations and altered the timing and occurrence of previously predictable daily and seasonal changes. While some individuals and populations of the same species are adjusting, others may not, and there is a growing appreciation that a comprehensive understanding of this variation in resilience requires an integrative approach. The mentored research conducted by participants in the CHANGE program will identify fundamental properties of robustness and resilience that enable certain populations or species to persist in response to rapid environmental change. The research will provide insight into increasingly relevant questions such as the following: (1) What is the ability to change as the climate changes?; (2) Does variation at critical levels or organization enable response to future change?; and (3) What responses enable adaptive change? The CHANGE program will employ evidence-based practices to create a community of practice, with intentional mentoring that enables a supportive, individualized learning and research environment. Through participation in the CHANGE program, participants will be prepared to become leaders in a rural, EPSCoR state and capable of tackling basic biological questions while engaging with questions of biological importance for the Upper Midwest on a changing planet. One unique goal of the CHANGE program is to systematically develop and disseminate an evidence-based model of mentoring post baccalaureates. In this way, our network will enhance national efforts to establish programs that are more inclusive of diverse populations.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.