Two New NSF-Funded Grants Announced as SSI Researchers Continue to Make a Difference
New England SusTainability Consortium (NEST)
A team of researchers led by the University of Maine (UMaine) and the University of New Hampshire (UNH) will conduct a three-year study of the many factors affecting the health of their shared coastal ecosystem. This collaboration, funded by a $6 million award from the National Science Foundation (NSF), aims to strengthen the scientific basis for decision-making related to the management of recreational beaches and shellfish harvesting. This research is a direct outgrowth of Maine’s Sustainability Solutions Initiative (SSI), supported by the NSF EPSCoR program. David Hart, Laura Lindenfeld and Kathleen Bell are Co-PIs on the project.
Of Pools and People: Small Natural Features with Large Ecosystem Functions in Urbanizing Landscapes
Researchers from SSI’s Protecting Natural Resources at the Community Scale (Vernal Pool) team have been awarded a grant from the NSF Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems (CNH) program for their project, “Of Pools and People: Small Natural Features with Large Ecosystem Functions in Urbanizing Landscape.” This 4-year project was funded for $1.49M and is scheduled to begin September 1, 2013. The project will explore the biophysical and socioeconomic components of vernal pool ecology and management.
PI: Aram Calhoun; Co-PIs: Mac Hunter, Kathleen Bell, Cyndy Loftin