From principles to action: Applying the National Research Council's principles for effective decision support to the Federal Emergency Management Agency's watch office

AbstractThe National Research Council (NRC) proposed six principles for effective decision support in its 2009 report Informing Decisions in a Changing Climate. We structured a collaborative project between the Federal Emergency Management Agency Region R9 (FEMA R9), the Western Region Headquarters of the National Weather Service (WR-NWS), and the Climate Assessment of the Southwest (CLIMAS) at the University of Arizona around the application of the NRC principles. The goal of the project was to provide FEMA R9's Watch Office with climate information scaled to their temporal and spatial interests to aid them in assessing the potential risk of flood disasters. We found that we needed specific strategies and activities in order to apply the principles effectively. By using a set of established collaborative research approaches we were better able to assess FEMA R9's information needs and WR-NWS's capacity to meet those needs. Despite our diligent planning of engagement strategies, we still encountered some barriers to transitioning our decision support tool from research to operations. This paper describes our methods for planning and executing a three-party collaborative effort to provide climate services, the decision support tool developed through this process, and the lessons we will take from this deliberate collaborative process to our future work and implications of the NRC principles for the broader field of climate services

Reckoning up: sexual harassment and violence in the neoliberal university

This paper situates sexual harassment and violence in the neoliberal university. Using data from a ‘composite ethnography’ representing twelve years of research, I argue that institutional inaction on these issues reflects how they are ‘reckoned up’ in the context of gender and other structures. The impact of disclosure is projected in market terms: this produces institutional airbrushing which protects both the institution and those (usually privileged men) whose welfare is bound up with its success. Staff and students are differentiated by power/value relations, which interact with gender and intersecting categories. Survivors are often left with few alternatives to speaking out in the ‘outrage economy’ of the corporate media: however, this can support institutional airbrushing and bolster punitive technologies. I propose the method of Grounded Action Inquiry, implemented with attention to Lorde’s work on anger, as a parrhesiastic practice of ‘speaking in’ to the neoliberal institution

Genome sequencing of the extinct Eurasian wild aurochs, Bos primigenius, illuminates the phylogeography and evolution of cattle

Background Domestication of the now-extinct wild aurochs, Bos primigenius, gave rise to the two major domestic extant cattle taxa, B. taurus and B. indicus. While previous genetic studies have shed some light on the evolutionary relationships between European aurochs and modern cattle, important questions remain unanswered, including the phylogenetic status of aurochs, whether gene flow from aurochs into early domestic populations occurred, and which genomic regions were subject to selection processes during and after domestication. Here, we address these questions using whole-genome sequencing data generated from an approximately 6,750-year-old British aurochs bone and genome sequence data from 81 additional cattle plus genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism data from a diverse panel of 1,225 modern animals. Results Phylogenomic analyses place the aurochs as a distinct outgroup to the domestic B. taurus lineage, supporting the predominant Near Eastern origin of European cattle. Conversely, traditional British and Irish breeds share more genetic variants with this aurochs specimen than other European populations, supporting localized gene flow from aurochs into the ancestors of modern British and Irish cattle, perhaps through purposeful restocking by early herders in Britain. Finally, the functions of genes showing evidence for positive selection in B. taurus are enriched for neurobiology, growth, metabolism and immunobiology, suggesting that these biological processes have been important in the domestication of cattle. Conclusions This work provides important new information regarding the origins and functional evolution of modern cattle, revealing that the interface between early European domestic populations and wild aurochs was significantly more complex than previously thought

Alternative Food Systems at Ground Level: The Fairbanks Community Garden

Alternative food system initiatives are often advocated as ways to meet goals of food security, environmental security, and community well-being. This paper presents data on one form of alternative food system initiative, a community garden, specifically regarding current and potential contributions to food security and social integration. Related to these goals, the most successful aspects of the community garden are provision of space and equipment to people who lacked these resources, as well as the creation of opportunities for a diverse cross-section of the community to develop personal relationships

Alternative Food Systems at Ground Level: The Fairbanks Community Garden

Alternative food system initiatives are often advocated as ways to meet goals of food security, environmental security, and community well-being. This paper presents data on one form of alternative food system initiative, a community garden, specifically regarding current and potential contributions to food security and social integration. Related to these goals, the most successful aspects of the community garden are provision of space and equipment to people who lacked these resources, as well as the creation of opportunities for a diverse cross-section of the community to develop personal relationships

Assessing Access to Local Food System Initiatives in Fairbanks, Alaska

Local food system initiatives are an increasingly popular attempt to address environmental and social-equity problems that seem to be inherent in the conventional global food system. However, relatively few studies have been undertaken to assess the ability of local food system initiatives to ameliorate these concerns. This study focuses on a community with food system vulnerabilities related to geographic isolation and a marginal agricultural climate that limits local food production. The study seeks to develop tools to test hypotheses important to this community and others: whether local foods can be as physically and economically accessible as conventional foods. Using spatial analysis and quantitative price comparisons, the study concludes that at this time, locally grown foods in Fairbanks, Alaska, are not as accessible as conventional foods. The tools applied in this study could be used elsewhere to develop a more robust literature on the impact of local food system initiatives on urban food systems

Planning and Evaluating the Societal Impacts of Climate Change Research Projects: A guidebook for natural and physical scientists looking to make a difference

As scientists, we aim to generate new knowledge and insights about the world around us. We often measure the impacts of our research by how many times our colleagues reference our work, an indicator that our research has contributed something new and important to our field of study. But how does our research contribute to solving the complex societal and environmental challenges facing our communities and our planet? The goal of this guidebook is to illuminate the path toward greater societal impact, with a particular focus on this work within the natural and physical sciences. We were inspired to create this guidebook after spending a collective 20+ years working in programs dedicated to moving climate science into action. We have seen firsthand how challenging and rewarding the work is. We’ve also seen that this applied, engaged work often goes unrecognized and unrewarded in academia. Projects and programs struggle with the expectation of connecting science with decision making because the skills necessary for this work aren’t taught as part of standard academic training. While this guidebook cannot close all of the gaps between climate science and decision making, we hope it provides our community of impact-driven climate scientists with new perspectives and tools. The guidebook offers tested and proven approaches for planning projects that optimize engagement with societal partners, for identifying new ways of impacting the world beyond academia, and for developing the skills to assess and communicate these impacts to multiple audiences including the general public, colleagues, and elected leaders.Advancing Research Impacts in Society National Science Foundation Climate Assessment for the SouthwestThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected] original PDF with revised PDF 22-Jul-2022. (Revision added the DOI to the citation in the PDF.) Also updated the dc.identifier.citation to include the DOI. Kimberl

The art of co-production of knowledge in environmental sciences and management: lessons from international practice

This review paper addresses the challenging question of "how to" design and implement co-production of knowledge in climate science and other environmental and agricultural sciences. Based on a grounded theory review of nine (9) published case studies of transdisciplinary and collaborative research projects, the paper offers a set of common themes regarding specific components and processes for the design, implementation, and achievement of co-production of knowledge work, which represent the "Modus Operandi" of knowledge co-production. The analysis focuses on practical methodological guidance based on lessons from how different research teams have approached the challenges of complex collaborative research. We begin by identifying broad factors or actions that inhibit or facilitate the process, then highlight specific practices associated with co-production of knowledge and necessary competencies for undertaking co-production. We provide insights on issues such as the integration of social and professional cultures, gender and social equity, and power dynamics, and illustrate the different ways in which researchers have addressed these issues. By exploring the specific practices involved in knowledge co-production, this paper provides guidance to researchers on how to navigate different possibilities of the process of conducting transdisciplinary and co-production of knowledge research projects that best fit their research context, stakeholder needs, and research team capacities.U.S. Geological Survey from the Southwest Climate Science Center [G13AC00326]Open access article.This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

Developing Evaluation Indicators to Improve the Process of Coproducing Usable Climate Science

Resource managers and decision-makers are increasingly tasked with integrating climate change science into their decisions about resource management and policy development. This often requires climate scientists, resource managers, and decision-makers to work collaboratively throughout the research processes, an approach to knowledge development that is often called "coproduction of knowledge." The goal of this paper is to synthesize the social science theory of coproduction of knowledge, the metrics currently used to evaluate usable or actionable science in several federal agencies, and insights from experienced climate researchers and program managers to develop a set of 45 indicators supporting an evaluation framework for coproduced usable climate science. Here the proposed indicators and results from two case studies that were used to test the indicators are presented, as well as lessons about the process of evaluating the coproduction of knowledge and collaboratively producing climate knowledge.Department of the Interior Southwest Climate Science Center Award [G13AC00326]; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Program Office [NA11OAR4310150]; California Nevada Applications Program at the Desert Research Institute6 month embargo; Published Online 20 January 2017.This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

A Path to Actionable Climate Science: Perspectives from the Field

The U.S. Department of the Interior Climate Science Centers (CSCs) work with natural and cultural resource managers and scientists to gather information and build tools needed to help fish, wildlife, and ecosystems adapt to the impacts of climate change. The CSCs prioritize the delivery of actionable science products (e.g., synthesized scientific information, maps, decision support tools, etc.) that are focused on key management priorities and co-produced by teams of scientists and managers. In the specific case of the Northwest CSC, we have been successful at promoting and supporting the co-production of actionable climate science at the individual project level, but it has been more difficult to replicate this success at the regional program level. Here we identify the most significant challenges in satisfying this mandate and propose the creation of a Science Advisory Panel to provide improved interface between resource managers and scientists engaged with the Northwest CSC.U.S. Department of the Interior Southwest Climate Science Center [G13AC00326]12 month embargo; published online: 22 November 2017This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]