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Galapagos Marine Reserve: From knowledge to conservation

June 19, 2018

School of fish In partnership with Charles Darwin Foundation, ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes Founding Director Leah Gerber will be facilitating a workshop titled "Linking knowledge to conservation outcomes in the Galapagos Marine Reserve" in Ecuador on June 19, 2018.

In the Galapagos Islands, a large no-take marine protected area was recently established around the remote islands of Darwin and Wolf. This reserve represents one-third of the greater Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR) and is entirely closed to fishing.

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ASU-STRI partnership calls for proposals

June 18, 2018

Violet-crowned woodnymph bird standing on branch

The ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes has recently joined other ASU units to launch a five-year collaborative research initiative in partnership with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama.

This new ASU-STRI effort follows a successful earlier partnership that finished in 2015. The new partnership aims to cultivate a shared research agenda to understand and manage human and ecological systems in the tropics and to train the next generation of tropical scientists. Specific research foci include:

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ASU faculty helps develop sustainable tourism in Indonesia

June 8, 2018

ASU faculty and Conservation International staff group photo on gardenChristine Vogt and Megha Budruk, faculty from ASU’s Center for Sustainable Tourism, joined Conservation International in Cempedak Island in Indonesia to develop a sustainable tourism and conservation revenue funding proposal for the region during a two-day workshop held April 9-10, 2018. See below for their report on this exciting initiative.


Written by Vogt and Budruk

At an October 2017 Conservation International meeting in Adelaide, a group of CI staff collectively identified potentially effective revenue generating opportunities that channel funds directly to conservation. At this workshop, tourism-related revenue mechanisms emerged at the top of the list of potential opportunity areas for further investigation. In addition, several country programs (incl. Samoa, Timor-Leste, Philippines, Indonesia and New Caledonia) identified ongoing or short-term on-the-ground opportunities to develop meaningful engagement with the tourism sector.

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Bond between public and universities could brighten America’s future

View Source | May 22, 2018

Water and mountain landscape with sunrise on backgroundA recent Associated Press article highlights the ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes as an example of innovative partnerships born within universities with the potential of solving society’s most unsettling problems.

In the article, A new bond between the public and universities could brighten America’s future, Dean Amber Miller writes, “These kinds of partnerships do exist inside universities, such as the Johns Hopkins Community Health Partnership, Arizona State University’s Center for Biodiversity Outcomes, the USC Dornsife Southern California Earthquake Center, and elsewhere,” states Miller. “But they are often forged by individual centers and institutes and exist as isolated efforts within their home institutions.”

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Now hiring! Summer student

May 18, 2018

Small plant sitting on pot by laptop on wood tableThe ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes is hiring a summer 2018 student. The ideal candidate would facilitate a research project aimed at developing a decision tool for conservation investments, as well as assist with center communications and marketing.

Essential duties include collaboratively design the tool structure, compile and clean data and metadata for input; incorporate modeling framework into R; use R Shiny to build an interactive web application; work one-on-one with the center's communication manager; develop web-based communication materials, including blogs, social media posts and newsletters.

$15/hr, 20 hrs/wk. Click here for a complete job description.

If interested in applying, please contact Anahi Astudillo and Krista Kemppinen.

Field guide to engaging in team science

May 18, 2018

Illustration of two hands shaking with collaboration related words written on themThe Center for Research Strategy at the National Cancer Institute published an updated Collaboration and Team Science Field Guide.

This guide is a useful resource to assist researchers in navigating common issues regarding science team collaborations.

Some of the topics include vision, communication, research collaborations, emotional intelligence, leadership, mentoring, recognition, addressing conflict and disagreement, as well as navigating and leveraging networks and systems.

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ASU-Conservation International celebrate promising year, plan for the second

April 30, 2018

Yellow flower bloomed and one about to bloomThe ASU-Conservation International annual retreat was held April 23-26, 2018 at the ASU Tempe campus. The retreat celebrated the successful first year of the partnership and outlined priorities for subsequent years.

“As we reflect on the past year of our unique partnership, we are keeping our eye on the horizon,” Project Manager Amy Scoville-Weaver said. “The sky is the limit for our two organizations.”

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Global funding for biodiversity conservation

April 26, 2018

Headshot of professor Dan MillerOn April 25, 2018, the ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes and the Global Drylands Center hosted Daniel Miller, an assistant professor in Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, for the Hugh Hanson seminar series.

During his talk, co-authored by Anthony Waldron, and titled “Frontiers in the assessment of global funding for biodiversity conservation,” Dr. Miller discussed findings from a recent paper published in the journal Nature examining the impacts of conservation spending on biodiversity loss. He explained how evidence-based model can be used to quantify how conservation spending reduces the rate of biodiversity loss.

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Training the next generation of conservation leaders

April 25, 2018

ASU Sustainability Students marching on campus with large 3D planet EarthThe ASU and Conservation International partnership continues to advance one of its three main goals, which is to train the next generation of conservation leaders. A recent article by CI’s Editorial Director Bruno Vander Velde titled “To tackle environmental challenges, start with students” offers great insight into the advancement of this strategic goal, which is at the heart of ASU’s innovative model for The New American University.

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ASU-CI partnership in action in the world’s epicenter of biodiversity

April 20, 2018

Gerber and Sabo scuba diving with groupAs part of their Fulbright Fellowships to Ecuador, Professors Leah Gerber and John Sabo are experiencing the interface between people and nature in the Amazon rainforest and on the Galapagos Islands.

Sabo’s work focuses on strategic development of hydropower in the Amazon basin and Gerber’s focus is on the social, ecological and economic dimensions of marine conservation in the Galapagos Islands.

During their time in the Galapagos Islands, the pair are also piloting the ASU-CI Professor-in-Residence program. The converse of our ASU-CI Professor of Practice program where CI scientists engage with ASU scholars. Professor in Residence work on the ground with conservation practitioners.

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ASU-CI professors of practice speed talks

April 17, 2018

ASU-CI professors of practice pose next to ASU statueIn partnership with Conservation International, the ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes will be hosting a series of speed talks by the ASU-Cl professors of practice on their respective research areas. This will be a great opportunity for faculty to learn more about their work and find out ways to get involved.

Wednesday, April 25, 9:25-10:25 a.m., ASU Tempe campus, Wrigley Hall 481. Light refreshments will be served. RSVP »

Click here to learn more about the ASU-CI partnership.

 

Can nature save us? Stories from the natural world

April 17, 2018

Headshot of M. SanjayanIn partnership with Conservation International, the ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes will be hosting a talk by CI CEO and ASU-CI Distinguished Professor of Practice M. Sanjayan titled, “Can nature save us? Stories from the natural world.”

The talk will take place on Tuesday, April 24, 2018 from 1:30-2:30 p.m. at ASU Tempe campus, Memorial Union, Mohave 236.

Sanjayan will be discussing the importance of nature to human wellbeing and the role we all play in conserving it.

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The Great Pacific Garbage Patch: Size and impacts

View Source | March 29, 2018

Garbage debris floating in oceanAn interview with Beth Polidoro, ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes deputy director and assistant professor of environmental chemistry in the School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, was published in today’s edition of ASU Now.

In this piece, Professor Polidoro provides key facts and insights on The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

“The garbage patch was discovered in the late 1980’s. However, the size and amount of garbage has exponentially increased, especially over the past decade,” explains Polidoro. “Plastic use — and discards in general — have exponentially increased and are projected to reach more than 400 million tons per year by 2020.”

Endangered vaquitas, Souls of the Vermilion Sea

March 26, 2018

Film poster Souls of the Vermilion SeaIn the afternoon of Sunday, March 25, 2018, the ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes, in partnership with Plea for the Sea and Lightkeepers Foundation, hosted a film screening and expert panelist discussion about the vaquitas, the most endangered marine mammal in the world.

The vaquita is a small porpoise that can only be found in the northern waters of the Gulf of California, Mexico. Acoustic monitoring programs indicate that less than 30 individual vaquitas remain in the wild, and are threatened by fishing activities and by illegal trade in the swim bladders of the totoaba, an endangered fish species which shares the vaquita’s habitat in the Gulf.

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Endangered vaquitas: Film screening and discussion

March 21, 2018

Film poster illustration of three vaquitas swimming in coral reef with title of the film "Souls of the Vermilion Sea"Arizona State University’s Center for Biodiversity Outcomes is pleased to collaborate with local partners Plea for the Sea and Lightkeepers Foundation to offer a special screening of the short documentary Souls of the Vermilion Sea.

The free public event will occur on Sunday, March 25 from 3-5 p.m. at the university’s Memorial Union in Room 230 (Pima). The event will also be live streamed. More details are available at the following link:  http://links.asu.edu/VaquitaEvent  

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Biodiversity research focal areas and initiatives

March 9, 2018

Close up of tropical white flower and thin branchThe ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes will be hosting three sessions this spring dedicated to highlight important biodiversity conservation research taking place at the university.

Each session will explore a different focal area: Stakeholder engagement; biodiversity evidence, metrics and monitoring; decision science.

Case statements will be presented, followed by an open Q&A session. Light refreshments will be served.

For additional information and to RSVP, please click here.

ASU Open Door: Learning about the natural world

March 8, 2018

Close up of kids hands playing with animal figurinesOn February 24, the ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes joined other ASU centers and schools in engaging with children of all ages as part of the ASU Open Door 2018.

For its third year participating in the program, the center organized three activities designed to teach students about conservation. This included asking participants to put together a giant jigsaw puzzle of the Amazonian rainforest, matching animals and people to certain biospheres and letting children dig for (fake) insects in a tin of soil.

Prizes were handed out for completion, which included nature-themed bookmarks and stickers. For the first time, a TED-ED video was shown on loop at the table explaining biodiversity and its global importance.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity to watch children, from babies to high-school students, learn about the natural world and have fun doing it,” Project Manager Amy Scoville-Weaver said. “I hope they all came away with a new interest in biodiversity and the role they can play in conserving it.”

Initial numbers estimate as many as 4,000 people participated in the event.

Study abroad in Botswana

View Source | February 3, 2018

Aerial view of Okavango Delta BotswanaLearn from the top water resource academic experts in the world through this ASU Study Abroad initiative, while exploring the intersection of water, ecosystems and governance.

This program is a part of the PLuS Alliance, Connected River Basins with University of New South Wales, Sydney and Kings College London.

ASU students will be joining students and faculty from the two other universities as well as the University of Botswana to participate in an interdisciplinary course centered on water resource management.

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Conservation science in practice

January 31, 2018

ASU-CI Professors of Practice group photo by ASU statueThis spring, as part of the Knowledge Partnership between Arizona State University and Conservation International, six CI scientists began teaching a course for 38 undergraduate and graduate students at ASU.

The course, titled Biodiversity Conservation in Practice, is designed and taught by the CI-ASU Professors of Practice: Jorge Ahumada, David Hole, Miroslav Honzák, Jack KittingerRosimeiry Portela and Percy Summers.

The course brings CI’s science, experience and field conservation issues into the classroom, giving students an opportunity to learn from and question leading conservationists in their fields of research and practice.

The course syllabus builds on the first-hand experience of these scientists and covers a range of cutting-edge conservation science applications, including species population assessments, ecosystem services, landscape conservation planning, sustainable production, ocean conservation and nature’s role in global sustainability.