Communicating Science for the Baltimore Ecosystem Study

The theme of the BES Quarterly Research Meeting on Tuesday 5 April is Communicating Science. Featured speakers include Tim Wheeler of the Baltimore Sun, Julie Palakovich Carr from American Institute of Biological Sciences, and science writer Rebecca Wolf. Contributors also include BES members Mary Cadenasso, Brian McGrath, and Steward Pickett.

Topics include Communicating Effectively with Reporters, Communicating Effectively with Policymakers, Making Effective Use of Photography in Scientific Research, Video Techniques in Communicating Scientific Research, Scientific Writing for the Public, Effective Slide Design, and Clear Technical Writing. The morning consists of morning talks discussing best practice and successful strategies for each of the communication types. The afternoon will focus on working groups to provide hands on experience in some of the methods. The detailed agenda, information about location, and alerts of things to bring if you have them are given below.

BES Quarterly Research Meeting

Communicating Science

Organizers: Chris Swan (UMBC) and Steward Pickett (Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies)

Tuesday April 5, 2011, 9:00 am-5:00 pm

University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC)

Room 310, University Center, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250

Agenda

9:00 am Coffee—Gather & Schmooze

9:20 am Chris Swan

Associate Professor, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Welcome

9:30 am Tim Wheeler

Environmental Reporter, The Baltimore Sun

Communicating Effectively with Reporters

10:00 am Julie Palakovich Carr

Senior Public Policy Associate, American Institute of Biological Sciences

Communicating Effectively with Policymakers

10:30 am Molly Mehling

Research Associate, Miami University

Making Effective Use of Photography in Scientific Research

11:00 am Brian McGrath

Associate Professor, Parsons The New School of Design

Video Techniques in Communicating Scientific Research

11:30 am Rebecca Wolf

Science Writer and Editor, More Than Words, Odenton MD

Scientific Writing for the Public

12:00 pm Mary Cadenasso

Associate Professor. University of California, Davis

Effective Slide Design

12:30-1:30 Lunch

1:30-2:15 Steward Pickett

Cary Institute, Millbrook NY

Clear Technical Writing

2:15-4:30 Working groups on photography, video, writing for the public, slide

presentations, interview role play

4:30-5:00 Sharing group work and insights

5:00 Adjourn

Please bring, depending on your interest in the working group breakout sessions:

1. A digital camera.
2. A video recorder.
3. An abstract or short research summary.
4. A scientific presentation.
5. Your laptop computer.

We will supply a couple of cameras and video recorders for those who are interested in those technologies but who do not own the equipment.

You may park at the TRC without charge and walk to the Campus Center. You must obtain a permit from Sabrina Strohmier in room TRC 102. Metered parking spaces are also available in the UMBC parking facility near the Campus Center.

BES Adds Four Co-Principal Investigators

To acknowledge the broad community that contributes to and manages the Baltimore Ecosystem Study, four persons have agreed to be added as official Co-Principal Investigators and to be recognized as such by the National Science Foundation:

Dr. Mary L. Cadenasso, Associate Professor of Ecology at the University of California, Davis has been added to promote synthesis and conceptual development in BES. Mary is a landscape ecologist, was one of the co-authors of the original BES proposal and led development of the HERCULES urban land classification system.

Dr. Peter M. Groffman, Senior Scientist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, has been added as Deputy Director, in recognition of his management of the budget. Peter is a microbial ecologist and also contributes to the management of stream sampling and analysis.

Dr. J. Morgan Grove, Research Forester with the USDA Forest Service, has been added to facilitate interaction between BES and the Northern Research Station, which is a major contributor of research and education staff and support for their work. Dr. Grove has been working as a social ecologist in Baltimore since 1989.

Dr. Claire Welty, Director of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Center for Urban Environmental Research and Education, has been added to help formalize relationships with our host institution in Baltimore. UMBC provides lab and office space, meeting space, and intellectual partnership. Claire is a hydrologist with interest in ground water dynamics.

These new Co-PIs join the Lead Principal Investigator and Project Director, Steward T.A. Pickett of the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, in being listed on the cover page of the BES III grant from NSF.

The new Co-PIs are ongoing members of the Project Management Committee (PMC) which meets monthly throughout the calendar year. The Project Management Committee administers BES, with yearly input from the Steering Committee, a meeting open to all members of the BES community. The PMC consists of representatives from several institutions that are central to the management of the project, including the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies as the main grantee organization, the University of Maryland, Baltimore County as the local host institution, the USDA Forest Service as a provider of significant numbers of research staff and associated material support, and the Parks & People Foundation which facilitates community and decision maker engagement. Other members of the committee bring specific expertise or perspectives to project management, including budgetary management, conceptual and empirical synthesis, social sciences, environmental economics, aquatic sciences, the graduate student community, education research, education programming, information management, and administration. There is a seat on the committee that is filled by a new member from BES each year. This rotating position is intended to increase the breadth of participation in the committee, familiarize a larger number of BES participants with project management, and to inject new perspectives into the deliberations of the committee.

Full membership in the PMC through November 2011 is as follows:

Dr. Alan Berkowitz, Head of Education, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Millbrook NY

Ms Holly Beyar, BES Project Facilitator, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies

Dr. M.L. Cadneasso, University of California, Davis

Ms Bess Caplan, Ecology Education Program Leader, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies (office at Parks & People Foundation, Baltimore)

Ms Jacqueline Carrera, President and CEO, Parks & People Foundation, Baltimore

Dr. Peter M. Groffman, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies

Dr. J. Morgan Grove, PMC Committee Chair, USDA Forest Service

Mr. Guy Hager, Senior Director of Great Parks, Clean Streams & Green Communities

Dr. Elena Irwin, Rotating Member 2010-2011, Ohio State University

Ms Tamara Newcomer, Graduate Student Representative, University of Maryland, College Park

Dr. Steward T.A. Pickett, BES Lead Principal Investigator and Project Director, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies,

Mr. Jonathan M. Walsh, Information Manager, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies

Dr. Mary Washington, Associate Director of Great Parks, Clean Streams & Green Communities, Parks & People Foundation

Dr. Claire Welty, Director, Center for Urban Environmental Research and Education, UMBC

Over the years, the following persons have served on the PMC either as rotating or longer-term members: Dr. William R. Burch, Yale University; Dr. Larry E. Band, University of North Carolina; Dr. Robert Costanza, University of Vermont; Dr. Christopher M. Swan, UMBC; Dr. Andrew Miller, UMBC; Dr. Richard V. Pouyat, USDA Forest Service; Mr. Kenneth Belt, USDA Forest Service; Dr. Geoffrey Buckley, Ohio University; Kirsten Schwarz, then of Rutgers University.

Minutes of the PMC meetings are posted for BES members on the internal pages of the BES website.