A Proposal for the Network Office of the U.S. Long Term Ecological Research Network

LTER网络办公室（NET）于1997年移交给新墨西哥大学。. NET的目标是向ltter提供基本服务，促进ltter场址之间以及ltter与更广泛的环境科学界之间的交流，促进新技术，并在数据和信息管理方面发挥领导作用。自从NET搬到阿尔伯克基以来，LTER已经从18个站点增加到24个站点，相关科学家的数量从894名增加到1500多名。这一建议是要求将后勤网络办公室延长6年。网络服务的五项核心功能将会继续和加强，以更好地满足社区的需要。还要求提供资金以扩大其他四个重点领域，这些领域对于扩大LTER对科学和社会的影响至关重要。本项目支持的五项基本。NET功能包括：(1)为ltter社区提供服务（例如，提案编制、会计、会议协调）；(2)计算和通信基础设施（如电子邮件、数据库备份、网络访问）；(3)信息管理和方法开发（例如，数据和元数据标准化、管理和扩展LTER网络数据库）；(4)网络发展、社区外展和培训（例如，协调生物多样性信息学伙伴关系、OBFS培训和数据库开发）；(5)出版物和公众宣传（如通讯、网站、综合卷）。两个扩展的和相关的。NET功能对于使LTER能够达到对长期生态模式和过程的新的理解水平是必不可少的：(6)综合（例如，通过工作组进行整合和综合，创建增值数据库）和(7)信息系统设计和开发（例如，分布式数据网络，数据集成工具）。还要求提供资金，以继续和扩大LTER对美国国际科学界和环境教育的影响：(8)国际LTER（如协调ILTER会议、ILTER出版物、信息学培训）和(9)教育（如促进基于现场的教育计划、讲习班）。第十项活动，即执行长期信息网21世纪战略计划，将在信息网更新后的头两年内完成。在接下来的六年里，LTER网络办公室将继续通过以下方式促进生态学知识的进步和理解：(1)促进各站点之间和整个生态科学之间的LTER交流；(2)通过网络、综合和出版物、培训、社区和公众外展传播数据、信息和知识。致力于综合和信息系统开发、国际LTER和教育的新努力和资源将大大拓宽LTER科学的影响，使我们能够更好地向更广泛的科学界、学生和决策者提供综合和综合的数据和信息。此外，我们将大大加大努力，通过ILTER将LTER发展成为全球性的科学企业，并将LTER教育的范围扩大到校园之外（即从K-12到决策者再到普通公众）。我们将进一步扩大我们的努力，以接触服务不足的群体，包括加强对奇卡诺人和印第安人的关注。修订后的SOW包括以下十个部分，以反映DEB-0236154的组织结构。本文件附有修订后的预算和预算理由。战略规划文件将另行提交。SOW的每个部分详细说明了将在修订预算下进行和不进行的活动。所要求的预算与具体活动挂钩，而具体活动又与完成活动所需的人员时间挂钩。修订后的SOW明确确定了有利于LTER网络、国际LTER网络、一般科学界、教育界、新墨西哥大学（UNM）或NSF的活动。

The LTER Network Office (NET) was transferred to the University of New Mexico in 1997. NET objectives have been to provide basic services to LTER, facilitate communication among LTER sites and between LTER and the broader environmental sciences community, promote new technologies, and provide leadership in data and information management. Since NET moved to Albuquerque, LTER has grown from 18 to 24 sites and the number of associated scientists has expanded from 894 to more than 1500. This proposal represents a request to renew the LTER Network Office for the next six years. Five essential NET Service functions that are central to the operation of LTER would be continued and enhanced to better meet community needs. Funding is also requested to expand four other focal areas that are key to broadening the impact of LTER on science and society.The five essential NET functions supported through this project include: (1) service to the LTER community (e.g., proposal preparation, accounting, meeting coordination); (2) computational and communication infrastructure (e.g., e-mail, database backups, web access); (3) information management and methods development (e.g., data and metadata standardization, curation and expansion of LTER Network databases); (4) network development, community outreach and training (e.g., coordination of the Partnership for Biodiversity Informatics, OBFS training and database development); and (5) publications and public outreach (e.g., newsletters, web site, synthesis volumes). Two expanded and related NET functions are essential to enabling LTER to reach new levels of understanding of long-term ecological patterns and processes: (6) Synthesis (e.g., integration and synthesis via working groups, creation of value-added databases) and (7) Information System Design and Development (e.g., distributed data networking, dataintegration tools). Funding is also requested to continue and broaden the impacts that LTER has on the international scientific community and environmental education in the United States via: (8) International LTER (e.g., coordination of ILTER meetings, ILTER publications, informatics training) and (9) Education (e.g., facilitation of site-based education programs, workshops). A tenth activity, the implementation of a 21 st Century Strategic Plan for the LTER Network, would be completed within the first two years of the NET renewal.During the next six years, the LTER Network office will continue to facilitate knowledge advances and understanding within ecology by (1) promoting LTER communication among sites and throughout the ecological sciences and (2) disseminating data, information, and knowledge via the web, synthesis and publications, training, and community and public outreach. New efforts and resources devoted to synthesis and information system development, international LTER, and education will significantly broaden the impact of LTER science by enabling us to better provide integrated and synthetic data and information to the broader scientific community, students, and policy-makers. In addition, we will greatly increase our efforts to expand LTER into a global scientific enterprise via ILTER and expand the reach of LTER education beyondthe schoolyard (i.e., from K-12 to policy-makers to the general public). We will further expand our efforts to reach underserved groups, incorporating an enhanced focus on Chicanos and Native Americans.The revised SOW comprises the ten following sections, arranged to reflect the organization of DEB-0236154. A revised budget and budget justification accompany this document. Strategic planning documents will be submitted separately. Each section of the SOW details activities which will and will not take place under the revised budget. The requested budget is tied to specific activities, which in turn are linked to the personnel time needed to complete the activity. The revised SOW specifically identifiesactivities that will benefit the LTER Network, the International LTER Network, the general scientific community, the education community, the University of New Mexico (UNM), or NSF.