2011 pasi info from website

8/3/2019 2011 pasi info from website

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http://www.amazonpire.org/oppor-field11-apply.html

PASI Field Course 2011

APPLICATION INFORMATION:

Eligibility: Advanced graduate and post-doctoral scholars with earth system science

background (ecology, meteorology, hydrology, atmospheric sciences, soil science,

geosciences) from the U.S. and South American countries (with a focus on Brazil and

Peru).

TO APPLYfor the PASI (June 28-July 15, 2011), please fill out the online

application form and submit by March 1, 2011 March 20, 2011. The online form

requires the following:

(1) A brief description of an idea or proposal for a group research project that

might be feasible to do within the limitations of a 2-week field PASI. This can be anytopic you like, given your background and interests, that falls broadly within the theme

of the course (using tropical elevational gradients to address global change

questions), and which could be done by a small group (~3-6 people). Assume that

whatever instrumentation you need that might feasibly be brought to the field is in fact

available (a list of methods is listed on the main course page. Please limit this to no

more than 1 or 1.5 pages of single-spaced text, not including any figures, tables or

references. For guidance, see the references below, or see the "student

presentations" from previous years' courses.

(2) One letter of recommendation, (to be submitted via email by the referee to

[email protected]);

(3) A transcript or list of all courses taken, including grades received, for your

most recent academic degree;

(4) A current CV;

(5)A statement of financial need(optional for those seeking stipend support for

travel, including an amount of stipend sough for airfare to Peru (up to full airfare)).

Costs of lodging and board at field sites will be covered, and limited travel support is

available for those who have financial need (roundtrip airfare for those coming for the

U.S. may be in the range of U.S. $1,500 to $2,000). Students will be expected to

cover costs of their own meals for the days not in the field (e.g. travel days to andfrom Peru, and the free day in Cusco). Applicants for travel support will be judged on

their record of academic excellence, on the relevance of their research interests to

the scientific goals of PASI-PIRE, and ability to contribute to the broader international

educational goals of PASI-PIRE.

REFERENCES:

Malhi Y, Silman M, Salinas N, et al. 2010. Elevation gradients in the tropics:

laboratories for ecosystem ecology and global change research. GLOBAL CHANGE

BIOLOGY Volume: 16 Issue: 12 Pages: 3171-3175.

Saleska, S.S., Wofsy, and D. Metcalfe. 2010.Ecosytem Transitions from AndeanCloud Forest tot he Lowland Amazon: a Pan-American Advanced Studies Institute on
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Tropical Ecology, Biogeochemistry, and Climate in Peru(Proposal submitted to U.S.

NSF);

PASI Field Course 2011A Pan-American Advanced Studies Institute (PASI) inPeruTropical Ecology and Biogeochemistry,from Andean Cloud Forests to the Lowland Amazon

June 28 July 15, 2011

Application Deadline: March 1, 2011 March 20, 2011 (apply here)

Amazon-PIRE offers a Pan-American Advanced Studies Institute (PASI),

an intensive field engagement with problems in Tropical Ecology, Biogeochemistry,

and Climate. The course combines lectures by all participants (including aninternational group of faculty instructors), field-based instruction, and small group

projects to provide theoretical and practical tools to tackle global change problems in

a setting designed to foster effective international collaboration. ThePASI will take

place along an elevational gradient, from the Andean Cloud Forest to the Lowland

Amazon of Peru, in fully equipped field sites.

PASI enrollment is limited to 25-30 students, half from the U.S. and half from SouthAmerican countries (with a focus on Brazil and Peru), and is intended to provide post-

docs and advanced graduate students with an introduction to advanced topics in field

methods which they can use as a springboard for their own related research

questions.

The Amazon Basin contains the largest extant tropical forests on earth, with

unparalleled biological diversity, and a vast store of organic carbon. It is a potent

engine in the global water and energy cycles. Large changes in Amazonian

biodiversity, together with those in biogeochemical cycling of carbon and water,

expected to occur with climate change or deforestation, could have global as well as
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local impact. It is critically important to understand the ecological and biogeochemical

mechanisms that drive forest-climate interactions in Amaznia.

The theme ofPASI field projects will be: "What is the future of Amazon forests under

climate change?" We will use ecosystem transitions along the Peruvian elevational

gradient as a model for addressing this question.

Methods and Topics include:

Carbon, water, and vegetation dynamics using eddy covariance methods in

conjunction with plot-based forest inventories

and measurements of water isotopes in vapor and liquid

Ecophysiology of canopy leaves and whole-forest canopies via gas exchange

methods

Taxonomy and phylogeny of tropical vegetation communities

Soil properties, soil microbial communities, and trace gas biogeochemistry

Remote sensing, from ground measurements to satellite, of leaf characteristics (via

spectroradiometry) and forest structure

(via ground-based LIDAR)

Dynamic vegetation modeling of forest ecosystems

Data analysis techniques using the R software package.

Course organization includes:

Morning: field exercises and independent projects

Afternoon and early evening: class lectures and discussion

Late afternoon and night: project presentations

Spanish instruction and a boat trip

Hands-on experience with a variety of instruments Access to long-term dataset of data gathered at all scales

2011 pasi info from website

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