INS 14: Collaborative Networks: Building Thriving Research Communities Vital to Ecosystem Science

Thursday, August 5, 2021

7:00 AM – 8:00 AM Pacific

Session Organizer(s)

Anthony Walker

Environmental Sciences Division and Climate Change Science Institute, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Oak Ridge, TN, USA

Moderator(s)

Anthony Walker

Environmental Sciences Division and Climate Change Science Institute, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Oak Ridge, TN, USA

Volunteer(s)

Sachinthani Karunarathne

School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Melbourne, Australia

Session Co-organizers: Colleen Iversen, Climate Change Science Institute and Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, Kimberly Komatsu, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater, MD, Stan D. Wullschleger, Environmental Sciences Division and Climate Change Science Institute, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN

Ecosystems are defined by the complex interactions of their highly interconnected biotic, chemical, and physical components. The diversity of component parts and their multitude of possible connections makes deep knowledge of ecosystem mechanics beyond the reach of any one person. Thus it is imperative that ecologists work together within and across teams and communities to understand our vital and changing ecosystems. In this session we invite speakers who have achieved a deeper understanding of ecosystems through teamwork and team-building to share lessons learned on how to build thriving research communities. Speakers will share their experiences in developing research teams and networks that span a diverse range of topics, including model synthesis, data synthesis, manipulation experiments, sensor arrays, institutions, and communities. Speakers will also highlight the lessons learned from these networks that would not have been possible through individual work and provide recommendations for building new networks in an increasingly connected world.

Presentations:

ON DEMAND

Building partnerships to transform workplace climate across organizations and disciplines
Presenting Author: Erika Marin-Spiotta – Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison
ON DEMAND

Building research communities and networks across ALL of the Américas: One discussion at a time
Presenting Author: Shersingh Joseph Tumber-Dávila – Earth System Science, Stanford University
ON DEMAND

Building research community in ecosystem science: Narrative report of an uncontrolled experiment
Presenting Author: Bruce A. Hungate – Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University
ON DEMAND

Building teams to make scientific and societal progress on complex environmental challenges: Lessons from INTERFACE and INCCIA
Presenting Author: Jeffrey S. Dukes – Purdue Climate Change Research Center, Purdue University
ON DEMAND

Building transdisciplinary partnerships for data synthesis to advance ecological understanding
Presenting Author: Kimberly Komatsu – Smithsonian Environmental Research Center
ON DEMAND

Planting the seeds for tomorrow’s research priorities: My experiences as a federal program manager
Presenting Author: Daniel Stover – Office of Biological and Environmental Research, US Department of Energy
ON DEMAND

Science collaborations to enable large-scale ecosystem manipulation experiments
Presenting Author: Paul J. Hanson – Climate Change Science Institute and Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
ON DEMAND

The AmeriFlux Network: A carbon, water and energy community of practice
Presenting Author: Trevor Keenan – Dept. of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, UC Berkeley
ON DEMAND

The Nutrient Network: A collaborative experiment and an experiment in collaboration
Presenting Author: Elizabeth T. Borer – Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota
ON DEMAND

The power of network science: Lessons from Drought-Net
Presenting Author: Melinda Smith – Colorado State University