CNH: Urban Disamenities and Pests: Coupled Dynamics of Urban Mosquito Ecology and Human Systems Across Socioeconomically Diverse Communities

该项目将测试城市社会和经济衰退与城市蚊子侵扰是否相互反馈，如果是，如何打破这种恶性循环。在马里兰州巴尔的摩市进行的一项研究将研究城市衰败的特征，如人口下降、废弃地段和未管理的垃圾是否会促进蚊子的产生，以及这是否反过来阻碍了居民对室外环境的照顾和利用，从而加剧了城市衰败。在三个重点社区进行综合采样，将量化蚊子丰度与社区物理和社会经济状况之间的关系，以及蚊子暴露如何影响居民对户外活动的支持和参与以及城市振兴。实验将确定最能支持和激励居民主导的蚊虫控制战略的活动。具体而言，研究人员将：1)评估每个社区积极和消极的社会和环境特征的质量和数量；2)量化蚊子数量，确定促进冬季生存的机制；3)调查居民在控制蚊虫孳生地和个人暴露方面的知识、态度和行为；4)检验教育和积极的公民科学干预在改变居民灭蚊行为和居民对社区绿化项目认知方面的效果。研究结果将增加对城市环境中人类和害虫耦合动态的理解，并为翻译城市生态系统中的生态理论和发展城市绿化和公共卫生的可持续发展的社会生态理论提供基础信息。人-蚊耦合动力学是研究人-虫相互作用的社会生态学新理论、提高城市生活质量和促进社区参与社区振兴的重要模型。尽管一个多世纪以来，人们为控制蚊子进行了有组织的、往往是复杂的努力，但骚扰投诉持续存在，蚊子传播的疾病在全球城市社区持续存在，而且日益受到关注。越来越多的人认为，在城市和郊区控制蚊子的更好途径是，在单个包裹的规模上管理城市害虫的个人责任。这项工作调查了这个社会生态系统，整合了社区生态学、地理学、教育和环境正义的专业知识和理论。该研究旨在将社区领导人和居民纳入数据收集、解释和传播的各个阶段，以及集思广益的补救策略。该项目将培训研究生和本科生，包括代表性不足的群体的成员，利用社交媒体招募公民科学家和社区成员，并与城市和州机构以及社区基金会合作。

This project will test whether urban social and economic decay and urban infestations of mosquitoes feedback upon one another and, if so, how to break this vicious cycle. Research in Baltimore, Maryland, will examine whether features of urban decay such as population decline, abandoned lots, and unmanaged refuse promote mosquito production and whether this in turn discourages care for and use of the outdoor environment by residents and exacerbates urban decay. Comprehensive sampling in three focal neighborhoods will quantify the association between the abundances of mosquitoes and the physical and socio-economic status of neighborhoods, and how mosquito exposure influences resident support for and participation in outdoor activities and urban revitalization. Experiments will identify activities that best support and motivate resident-led strategies to control mosquitoes. Specifically, researchers will: 1) assess the quality and quantity of positive and negative social and environmental features in each neighborhood ; 2) quantify mosquito abundance and identify mechanisms that facilitate winter survival; 3) measure resident knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors associated with controlling mosquito breeding habitat and personal exposure; and 4) test the efficacy of education and active citizen-science interventions in changing mosquito control behaviors of residents and their perceptions about neighborhood greening projects. Results will increase understanding of coupled human and pest dynamics in an urban context and provide fundamental information for translating ecological theory in urban ecosystems and developing socio-ecological theory for sustainable advances in urban greening and public health. Coupled human-mosquito dynamics are an important model for developing new socio-ecological theory on human-pest interactions, improving urban quality of life, and engaging broader community participation in neighborhood revitalization. Despite over a century of organized and often sophisticated efforts to control mosquitoes, nuisance complaints persist and mosquito-borne diseases are a persistent and growing concern in urban communities across the globe. The need for personal responsibility in managing urban pests at the scale of individual parcels is increasingly viewed as the better route to mosquito control in urban and suburban settings. This work investigates this socio-ecological system, integrating expertise and theory from community ecology, geography, education, and environmental justice. The research is designed to include community leaders and residents at all stages of data collection, interpretation, and dissemination, as well as in brainstorming remediation strategies. The project will train graduate and undergraduate students, including members of under-represented groups, use social media to recruit and involve citizen scientists and community members, and partner with city and state agencies and a community-based foundation.