National Research Agenda: EPSCoR’s RolePanel discussion

Peter Goodwin

Acknowledgements: Breck Bowden, Lil Alessa, and many others

EPSCoR Jurisdictions and Climate Change

• Current Track 1: ≈ 18 awards with an environment focus. ≈ 11 awards related to climate science.

• Current Track 2: ≈ 6 with an environmental focus. ≈ 3 with a specific focus on climate.

≈ 22 Jurisdictions with some EPSCoR funding for environment

The 31 EPSCoR jurisdictions in this unique federal-state partnership offer NSF an incredible “test bed” for its new initiatives. EPSCoR institutions and research faculty have experience in S&T areas of national importance including energy, climate change, diversity, defense, scientific computation and homeland security.

• NSF EPSCoR should return to its original focus of increasing research capacity.

• NSF should use EPSCoR states and their research institutions as a test bed for new agency initiatives taking advantage of their size, diversity and nimble structures.

NSF EPSCoR needs to become more adaptive in order to improve strategic planning and to take advantage of new collaborative research opportunities in areas across states where EPSCoR has built strength relevant to S&T opportunities emerging at the national and international levels.

EPSCoR StrengthsEPSCoR Strengths

Jurisdiction Science and Technology Plan Regional community of scientists Investment in infrastructure to conduct environmental science Access

- State EPSCoR Committees- Regional Federal Agency Offices- State Agencies and Local Government- NGO- Stake-holders

EPSCoR Legacy (STPI)

Workshop on Large-scale Ecosystem RestorationWorkshop on Large-scale Ecosystem Restoration: : Selected Highlights Selected Highlights

May 14-15, 2013May 14-15, 2013

Adaptive Management- works at project scale- a major challenge at landscape scale

Targets and milestones How science informs policy and management Communicating Science

- Keep Tahoe Blue- We are Building Land

Discussion Concept: Establish an EPSCoR Task Committee:

1. Assess current EPSCoR activities in Climate Science and Ecosystem Resilience to identify inter-jurisdictional synergies that could contribute to the national research agenda

2. Learn from and explore possibilities of leveraging coordinated EPSCoR investments with emerging international research networks. Engage national experts.

National Research Agenda:

Potential concepts for leveraging EPSCoR contributions

Coupled Natural Human Systems - Science to inform policy and management – AM of Large Ecosystems- Adaptation of human and built environments to accommodate

change for thrivability - Interface between society, engineering (technology) and energy

Supplement and enhance existing networks - LTER, NEON, WEBB, CZO . . . . .

Support and contribute to emerging initiatives- SEES, LCC, RCC, . . . . . . . .

International Research Networks: Connections through Scientific Organizations –

including UN Target countries with ‘EPSCoR’-type programs – EU

(Ireland), Chile, New Zealand and Australia Research collaboration, immersion cultural

experience for students and agency exchanges Examples:

- Belmont Forum - NZ Crown Institutes, IAHR, CUASHI HIS, DataONE- Chilean Patagonia – 3+ EPSCoR States active