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

世纪的科学工作者面临着两个巨大的挑战：（1）培养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，包括土地使用变化、物种引进、大气沉降和气候变化。由于全球变化的影响很难预测，因此需要多学科和协作的观点来更好地理解这些影响并实施解决方案。协调的网络，整合跨学科和地点的研究人员提供了一个框架，以应对这些挑战。蝾螈种群和适应性研究合作网络（SPARCnet）是一个智力和地理分布的网络，汇集了不同的科学家，教育工作者，大学，联邦，州和非营利合作伙伴，使用陆地两栖动物作为模型，了解物种如何应对全球变化。SPARCnet RaMP计划将在这个协作和多学科网络中招募和指导30名学士后学员的多元化队列。个人和合作研究项目将由导师-学员团队进行，以调查模式和预测物种对全球变化的反应。这些小组还将整合政策和管理方面的各种观点。SPARCnet RaMP计划将为学员提供专业发展和职业探索，以获得职业或研究生院的机会，目标是扩大科学劳动力的参与。气候正在推动生态系统变化，但确切的反应将因当地条件而异。两栖动物特别危险，因为它们对温度和湿度的耐受性很窄。SPARCnet RaMP计划的全网络研究方法将确定同一物种的不同种群在很大的地理范围内对气候变化的敏感性和反应如何不同。计划参与者将整合复杂性和变化的多个来源，以了解当地适应和种群动态的行为，生理和遗传基础。与此同时，主要研究者将提供和评估循证指导实践的有效性和形成的研究经验，为每个队列的学士后学员。对该计划有效性的评估将侧重于该计划（1）如何建立和培养学员的科学身份，自我效能感和科学学科的归属感，所有这些都是衡量科学事业持久性和未来成功的重要指标，以及（2）为代表性不足的群体成员减少科学职业道路上的障碍。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为是值得的。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来提供支持。

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.