RaMP: Training the next generation of interdisciplinary scientists to collaboratively address species responses to climate change with SPARCnet

21世纪的科学工作者面临着两个艰巨的挑战：(1)培养出具有广泛思想和经验的新一代科学家；(2)减轻大规模全球变化的影响，包括土地利用变化、物种引进、大气沉积和气候变化。由于全球变化的影响很难预测，因此需要多学科和协作的视角来更好地了解这些影响并实施解决方案。整合不同学科和地点的研究人员的协调网络为应对这些挑战提供了一个框架。火蜥蜴种群和适应研究合作网络(SPARCnet)是一个智力和地理上分布的网络，它将不同的科学家、教育工作者、大学、联邦、州和非营利性合作伙伴聚集在一起，利用陆地两栖动物作为了解物种如何应对全球变化的模型。SPARCnet Ramp计划将在这个协作和多学科的网络中招募和指导30名毕业后导师。个别和协作研究项目将由导师-被辅导者团队进行，以调查物种对全球变化的模式和预测其反应。这些团队还将整合政策和管理的不同视角。SPARCnet Ramp计划将为学员提供职业发展和职业探索，以获得职业或研究生院的机会，目标是扩大对科学工作的参与。气候正在推动生态系统变化，但具体反应因人口而异，视当地情况而定。考虑到两栖动物对温度和湿度的耐受性很低，两栖动物面临的风险尤其大。SPARCnet RAMP计划的全网研究方法将确定同一物种在大地理范围内的不同种群在对气候变化的敏感度和反应方面的差异。项目参与者将整合复杂性和变异性的多种来源，以了解局部适应和种群动态的行为、生理和遗传基础。同时，首席调查员将为每一批毕业后学员提供和评估循证指导实践和形成性研究经验的有效性。对该计划有效性的评估将集中于(1)在科学学科中建立和培养被指导者的科学认同感、自我效能感和归属感，所有这些都是衡量科学事业坚持不懈和未来成功的重要指标，以及(2)减少代表不足群体成员在科学职业道路上的障碍。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并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。

Two formidable challenges exist for the scientific workforce in the 21st century: (1) to produce a new generation of scientists with a broad spectrum of ideas and experiences; and (2) to mitigate the impacts of large-scale global change, including land-use shifts, species introductions, atmospheric deposition, and climate change. Because the impacts of global change are challenging to predict, there is a need for multi-disciplinary and collaborative perspectives to better understand these impacts and to implement solutions. Coordinated networks that integrate researchers across disciplines and locations provide a framework to address these challenges. The Salamander Population and Adaptation Research Collaboration Network (SPARCnet) is an intellectually and geographically distributed network that brings together a diverse group of scientists, educators, university, federal, state, and non-profit partners to use terrestrial amphibians as models for understanding how species respond to global change. The SPARCnet RaMP program will recruit and mentor a diverse cohort of 30 postbaccalaureate mentees within this collaborative and multi-disciplinary network. Individual and collaborative research projects will be carried out by mentor-mentee teams to investigate patterns and predict responses of species to global change. These teams will also integrate diverse perspectives for policy and management. The SPARCnet RaMP program will provide professional development and career exploration for mentees to gain placement in career or graduate school opportunities, with the goal of expanding participation in the scientific workforce.Climate is driving ecosystem change, but the precise response will vary among populations based on local conditions. Amphibians are particularly at risk given their narrow temperature and moisture tolerances. The network-wide research approach of the SPARCnet RaMP program will determine how different populations of the same species, across a large geographic range, differ in their sensitivity and response to changing climate. Program participants will integrate multiple sources of complexity and variation to understand the behavioral, physiological, and genetic basis of local adaptation and population dynamics. In parallel, the principal investigators will provide and assess the effectiveness of evidence-based mentoring practices and formative research experiences for each cohort of postbaccalaureate mentees. Assessment of the effectiveness of this program will focus on how well the program (1) builds and fosters mentees’ scientific identity, self-efficacy, and sense of belonging in scientific disciplines, all of which are important measures of persistence and future success in scientific careers, and (2) reduces barriers in scientific career pathways for members of underrepresented groups.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.