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George Perkins Marsh Institute
Marsh Institute E-News
In these pages you will find updates about faculty awards and grants, working papers, graduate student work, Marsh lectures and upcoming events.

News

Snow

Albert, Norma and Howard '77 Geller Endowed Lecture Series

This year's Geller Endowed Lecture speaker will be Lester A. Snow. He is Director of the California Department of Water Resources, and has extensive experience as a water agency manager at the regional, state and federal levels. Lester Snow heads a Department that protects, conserves and manages California's water supply, including operation of the largest state-run, multi-purpose water and power system in the United States.

Population growth and changing climate are placing increasing demands on available water supplies in California and elsewhere. Water policies must increasingly balance myriad human demands with goals for healthy, resilient ecosystems. This lecture will present approaches being taken by the State of California to help ensure adequate water availability in the face of climate change, and to address the gap between sustainable water supplies and the many conflicting uses. It will also discuss lessons for water policy worldwide.

The lecture will take place at 4:30 pm on Thursday, November 19, 2009 in the University Center Grace Conference Room. The title of the talk will be "California Water Supply and Ecosystems: Confronting The Challenge of Climate Change." This event is co-sponsored by the Albert, Norma and Howard '77 Geller Research Grants and Lecture Series and The George Perkins Marsh Institute. The lecture is open to all.

Additional events associated with Director Snow's visit to Clark University include:

  • Lunch with Lester Snow, November 19th, 12:00-1:00 pm, the George Perkins Marsh Institute (open to all--lunch provided).
  • There are limited afternoon slots available on November 19th for one-on-one discussions with Director Snow; please contact Robert J. Johnston for additional details and availability.

Any questions regarding this event should be directed to Robert J. Johnston.

Seminar Series 2009-10 Academic Year

The George Perkins Marsh Institute and Jeanne X. Kasperson Research Library announce the 2009-10 Academic Year Seminar Series. Seminars will present cutting-edge research on human/environment interactions taking place at Clark University and are designed to catalyze discussions regarding future research possibilities. Seminars are open to all in the Clark community and will take place from 12:15 - 1:15 pm in the University Center Lurie Conference Room. The format is a 30-45 minute presentation followed by approximately 30 minutes of questions and discussion. Interaction with speakers is encouraged. Light refreshments will be provided. Please feel free to bring your own brown-bag lunch if desired.

The fourth seminar of the series is as follows:

Spens


Wednesday, December 2nd


Karen Spens, Professor of Supply Chain Management and Corporate Geography, Hanken School of Economics, Helsinki, Finland and Visiting Scholar, Clark University
"Humanitarian Logistics: Overview and Recent Advances"

Click here to see a listing of future seminars.

Geller Student Research Award Competition

The George Perkins Marsh Institute announces the Geller Student Research Award Competition for 2009-2010. The awards were established by the family of Dr. Howard Geller. Howard graduated from Clark in 1977 with a degree in Physics and in Science, Technology and Society (now Environmental Science and Policy). Geller Student Research Awards are intended to support student-initiated research projects that have the potential to advance both our understanding of opportunities for greater sustainability in the human use of resources and the environment and practical improvements that can be implemented.

Both undergraduate and graduate students are eligible for awards. Subject to the quality of applications, we anticipate making approximately six awards in amounts ranging from $1,500 to $2,500, and several smaller grants, up to $1,250. It is the intention of the committee to award at least one-third of regular and small awards to undergraduate projects, again subject to the number and quality of applications received.

Applications must be submitted by students. The deadline for applications is November 9, 2009 at 4:30 pm. Click here for details on the program announcement.

Questions should be directed to Robert J. Johnston, Director of the George Perkins Marsh Institute.

ASU and Clark University Partner to Help World Tourism Industry Improve Communities

The tourism industry is the world's largest employer, and a new collaboration between Arizona State University (ASU) and Clark University is devoted to making it more responsible to communities.

Please click here to read press release.

Marsh Welcomes New Visiting Scholars

Over the coming months, the Marsh Institute welcomes three new visiting scholars who will be in residence. In addition, there will be a new visiting scholar to GSOM who will be collaborating closely with members of the Institute.

Hollander

Justin Hollander is joining the Marsh Institute in September for a year. He is on sabbatical from a position as Assistant Professor in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University. His research and teaching is in the area of land use and urban redevelopment, with a focus on the changing physical form of neighborhoods in depopulating North America cities. His first book, Polluted and Dangerous: America's Worst Abandoned Properties and What Can Be Done About Them, was published earlier this year by the University of Vermont Press. During Dr. Hollander's tenure at Marsh, he will be working on two new books, one a primer on brownfields redevelopment and the other a monograph on the ways that Sun Belt cities are adapting to shrinking populations. Dr. Hollander is also leading a research project called the Open Neighborhood Project exploring the ways that technology can be used to improve public participation in planning.

Spens Karen Spens is a Professor of Supply Chain Management and Corporate Geography, Hanken School of Economics, Helsinki, Finland. She will be a visiting scholar at the Graduate School of Management at Clark, and will be working closely with our own Joe Sarkis. She is one of the world's top experts in the rapidly expanding field of humanitarian logistics, and we hope to involve her in numerous Marsh initiatives during her stay at Clark. On Wednesday, December 2nd (12:15pm in the Lurie Conference Room) Professor Spens will be giving a Marsh Institute Seminar entitled "Humanitarian Logistics: Overview and Recent Advances."

Scheer Dirk Scheer is a research associate and PhD candidate at the Institute for Social Science of the University of Stuttgart. He is currently working with Professor Ortwin Renn on communication of prospects and limitations related to carbon capture and storage. This work is part of a wider project cluster entitled SimTech (see http://www.simtech.uni-stuttgart.de/?lang=en). During his stay at Marsh this fall, Mr. Sheer hopes to collaborate with researchers addressing relationships between energy policy, risk and public communication.

Kate Lowe is a PhD candidate in City and Regional Planning at Cornell University, and an IDCE alumna of Clark University with historical ties to Marsh. Her dissertation research addresses regional transportation planning, specifically the role of federal, state and regional governance in determining mass transit investment. She will be in residence at Marsh for the 2009-10 academic year, collaborating with Clark research addressing issues related to green development in Massachusetts. We welcome her back to Clark and look forward to seeing the results of her research here.

Please welcome these scholars to Clark and help ensure that their visits are pleasant and productive!

New Socio-Technical Transitions Initiative (STTI)

A new Socio-Technical Transitions Initiative (STTI) will be housed at the Marsh Institute. STTI involves many collaborators from Clark University, WPI and elsewhere, and has been developed to work closely with the new Institute for Energy Innovation and Sustainability at Clark and WPI. To introduce the STTI, we have prepared a 10-page "prospectus" (PDF format) which describes the initiative, its goals and its current activities. Those interested in becoming involved with the STTI, or with questions, are encouraged to contact Dr. Johnston, Director, Marsh Institute, Halina Brown, Jennie Stephens, or Gordon Thompson.

Pew Report Finds New Management Plan Would Increase Economic Value of Groundfish Industry

Pew Report

This report chronicles the rise and fall of groundfish and describes what happened to the New England fishing economy as a consequence. The research was sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trust, and performed by resource economists Dr. Robert J. Johnston, Director, Marsh Institute, and Dr. Jon G. Sutinen, Professor, University of Rhode Island Department of Environmental & Natural Resource Economics.

PDF copies of the report can be obtained from Dr. Johnston at the Marsh Institute.

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