National Science Foundation Archives

Coastal SEES Collaborative Research: A Cross-site Comparison of Salt Marsh Persistence in Response to Sea-level Rise and Feedbacks from Social Adaptations

Nearly half of the world’s population lives within 100 km of the coast, the area ranked as the most vulnerable to climate-driven sea-level rise (SLR). Projected rates of accelerated SLR are expected to cause massive changes that would transform both the ecological and social dynamics of low-lying coastal areas. It is thus essential to improve…
Collaborative Research: The Scale of Governance in the Regulation of Land: Community Land Trusts in the Twin Cities

This research examines relationships between individuals and institutions, including multiple levels of government, with regard to land and property through an exploration of Community Land Trusts (“CLTs”) in the Twin Cities region of Minnesota. CLTs are private, not-for-profit organizations which own residential land in trust for a community defined by membership and geographical boundaries at…
Multi-scale Coupled Natural Human System Dynamics of Nitrogen in Residential Landscapes

This $1.6 million project is a multi-year, interdisciplinary partnership between institutions including the George Perkins Marsh Institute at Clark University, the City University of New York (CUNY), Cornell University, the U.S. Forest Service Northern Research Station, the University of North Carolina, Florida Atlantic University, the University of Rhode Island, and others. Urban, suburban and exurban…
LTER: PIE: Dynamics of Coastal Ecosystems in a Region of Rapid Climate Change, Sea-level Rise, and Human Impacts

Over the last 30 years, surface seawater temperatures in the adjacent Gulf of Maine have risen at three times the global average, rates of sea-level rise have accelerated, and precipitation has increased. Coupled with these changes in climate and sea level are substantial changes within the rapidly urbanizing watersheds that influence water, sediment, and nutrient…
Collaborative Research: Alternative Ecological Futures for the American Residential Macro System

An apparent, but untested, result of changes to the urban landscape is the homogenization of cities, such that neighborhoods in very different parts of the country increasingly exhibit similar patterns in their road systems, residential lots, commercial sites, and aquatic areas; that is, cities have now become more similar to each other than to the…
FCE III — Coastal Oligotrophic Ecosystems Research

The Florida Coastal Everglades (FCE) Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) site seeks to understand how global climate change and shifting approaches to water management affects the Florida Everglades and the 6 million residents in the region. By conducting extended-duration research in freshwater wetlands, mangrove swamps, and shallow seagrass communities of Florida Bay, the FCE LTER employs…
Urban Resilience to Extreme Weather Related Events

Urban areas are vulnerable to extreme weather related events given their location, high concentration of people, and increasingly complex and interdependent infrastructure. Recent disasters demonstrate not just failures in built infrastructure, they highlight the inadequacy of institutions, resources, and information systems to prepare for and respond to events of this magnitude. This interdisciplinary project will…
Translating Forest Change to Carbon Emissions/Removals Linking Disturbance Products, Biomass Maps, and Carbon Cycle Modeling in a Comprehensive Carbon Monitoring Framework

Forests are a globally-significant store of carbon, but this store is vulnerable to release from disturbance processes such as harvesting or fires that oxidize forest carbon, releasing it to the atmosphere as CO2 and contributing to global warming. At the same time, intact forests serve as a major offset to rising CO2 concentrations as forest…
Collaborative Research: The Distributed Biological Observatory (DBO) – A Change Detection Array in the Pacific Arctic Region, 2019-2024

The Pacific Arctic Region (PAR) is experiencing major reductions in seasonal sea ice and increases in seawater temperatures. A key uncertainty is how the marine ecosystem will respond to these shifts in the timing of spring sea ice retreat or delays in fall sea ice formation. Recent observations of reduced sea ice extent and duration…
Conservation Incentives and the Socio-Spatial Dynamics of Water Sustainability

Disputes over scarce water resources are common worldwide and there is a growing interest in voluntary incentives (e.g., payments offered to water users) as a strategy for reducing conflicts. Incentive-based programs hold promise, but uncertainties remain regarding how state and non-state environmental organizations may implement them. Efficient and effective implementation requires strategic allocation of financial…

George Perkins Marsh Institute

Be a force for change.