EnviroNews
"Signs of Life in Environmental Science"

News from Environmental Science at 
Bethune-Cookman University

Fall '08

Dr. Espejel Coming to BCU

Dr. Ileana Espejel of the Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Mexico, will be visiting Bethune-Cookman University November 11th – 14th to give seminars and discuss cooperative efforts with IES program faculty. Dr. Espejel’s main area of research is coastal zone management, particularly the ecology of sand dunes, the valuation and management of beaches, and regional planning in coastal areas. She coordinates the UABC program in Arid and Coastal Ecosystems Management and teaches in other interdisciplinary environmental programs at UABC. Dr. Espejel will offer a pair of seminars focusing on different aspects of her work in coastal resource management. Both seminars are open to the public.

Tuesday November 11th, 2PM
Graduate Seminar Room, Center for Civic Engagement
Regional Planning in the Coastal and Marine Ecosystems of Mexico

Over the last twenty years, the University of Baja California has been creating and experimenting with new interdisciplinary programs focusing on the involvement of students and teachers in solving local and regional environmental problems. Central to these efforts are methods that can be used when there is insufficient data available but plenty of willing local people and traditional knowledge, as is common in most developing countries. Several examples of these projects at different scales will be described in detail: the regionalization of Mexican marine ecosystems, regional planning for a nautical project in the Gulf of California, a management plan for a desert and coastal nature reserve, and restoration planning for a sand dune and beach ecosystem in the city where the University of Baja is located. At present, there are more than 100 professionals occupying government positions and leading consultancies that have been part of this program, and most of our projects have been utilized in part to provide stakeholder input for the development our coastal cities, nature reserves, and regional seas.

 

Wednesday November 12th, 4PM
Science Building Lecture Hall Room 117
BIKIMI: An Index for Integrated Evaluation of Beaches

BIKIMI, an integrated model for ecological and socioeconomic evaluation of recreational beaches, qualifies recreational beaches based on three quality ranks; one describing the natural features and infrastructure of beaches, another incorporating beach users’ perception, and the third measuring the economic value given to a room with an ocean view or a beachfront house. BIKIMI was applied to several Mexican, Brazilian and Californian urban beaches that were similar in their ecological features but economically and socio-culturally different in their uses and local perception. The BIKIMI model is simple, logical, and adaptable to other world beaches and useful for comparison purposes. Using BIKIMI to certify beaches has been recently proposed to the Mexican government as an alternative, more integrative, basis to identify the main issues to be incorporated into beach management plans. Three important beaches in Mexico (Acapulco, Los Cabos, and Ensenada) have initiated their management plans using BIKIMI.

 

The Wednesday seminar will be followed by a potluck dinner and mixer to be held in DeLand FL; directions will be available at the seminars. For further information on these seminars or related events, contact Dr. Michael Reiter, IES, at 386.481.2695 or reiterm@cookman.edu.

 

BSSP Project Proceeding Apace

Undergrad students Courtney JnBaptiste, Rashan Moss, and James Kurii, along with soon-to-be graduate student Kim Nowells and Stetson University intern Cary Bleasdale have been tracking down those elusive snails with Drs. Reiter and Walter. Thus far, the results have been somewhat hopeful: though numbers and habitat have apparently declined from the early 1990's, recovery into unutilized areas of newly-developing habitat after a recent storm have been encouraging, suggesting that habitat availability might be more of a factor than water quality. We'll keep looking!

 

 

Summer '08

All Wet

Undergrad students Courtney JnBaptiste and Rashan Moss made their first foray to Blue Spring State Park in search of elusive endemic Aphaostracon and Floridobia (previously Cincinnatia) snails. Courtney is beginning his Mellow Foundation project on the rare snails, and we are happy to report (preliminarily) that there still appear to be populations of these snails in the run (though their identification will still have to be confirmed and their numbers and range appear to be reduced from the last time a survey was performed). So, work will continue over the next year and a half.

 

 

ECSC Coming to BCU!

Dr. Michael Reiter has recently learned that BCU will be added to the consortium of schools working in the Environmental Cooperative Science Center beginning this summer. The ECSC, funded by NOAA, works on integrated assessment methodologies for making coastal resource management decisions. Along with the work comes a $380,000 grant to help fund research and support Masters students to be trained in integrated assessment methods. By adding BCU to the consortium, Dr. Reiter will continue to act as the Thematic Area Lead PI in Integrated Assessment for the ECSC.

 

Spring '08

Student and Mentor Return from Portland

Undergraduate Environmental Science student Courtney JnBaptiste and Dr. Reiter recently returned from Portland OR, where they participated in the kickoff meeting for the Mellon Foundation-sponsored Undergraduate Environmental Research Initiative administered by Lewis and Clark College. Courtney, who successfully competed for a $4500 grant under the program, presented the topic of his proposed research over the next two years (which will focus on human use and development in the source basin for Blue Spring in Orange City FL and the impacts on rare snails in the spring run), and met the other grant recipients from approximately 20 colleges and universities across the country. He also had the chance to see what the opposite corner of the country looks like (which, at the time, was hilly, in the 50's F, and drizzly!). He is currently setting up the sampling and data collection schedule, as well as looking for an assistant. Good luck, Courtney, on your project.

 

Focus the Nation Events Successful

The roundtables and seminars for the Focus the Nation events at BCU were very successful, with over 100 students, faculty, staff, and community members taking part in the various events over the two days. Dr. John Kermond provided a stimulating seminar on the existing data, models, and projections, supported with innumerable personal experiences with data collection pertaining to climate shifts. Plans were made for some student-directed initiatives related to the roundtables; we'll keep you posted.

 

BCU Looks to Focus the (Nearby) Nation

The Environmental Science program is spearheading an effort to organize events on campus January 30th and 31st as part of the Focus the Nation (http://www.focusthenation.org/index.php) national teach-in on the global climate change issue. Being planned are a showing of the webcast of "The 2% Solution" at 8PM on January 30th, four roundtable discussions around campus on the 31st each focusing on a different aspect of the issue (scientific, economic, socio-cultural, and ethical), and an evening seminar and mixer the evening of the 31st keynoted by Dr. John Kermond. Dr. Kermond recently retired as a University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) Visiting Scientist at the Climate Program Office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).  Prior to that he was with the NOAA Office of Global Programs; and, for many years represented the Marine Division of the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges (NASULGC) in Washington, D.C. Dr. Kermond has traveled extensively and participated in major international research projects including a 2006 voyage to the Arctic on board a Soviet icebreaker.  In addition to climate research, Dr. Kermond has been producing science video documentaries for almost 20 years. The events and a summary of keynote are found below, or you can access a pdf of the flyer here; we hope to see you there.

The Likely, the Probable, the Uncertain, and the Unknowable of Climate Change, and Why We Should Care
Dr. John Kermond

From the North Pole on board a Russian icebreaker, to the Southern Ocean of Australia; from the middle of Bolivia studying the South American Low Level Jet, to Iwakuni, Japan and Cheju Island below South Korea in the Aerosol Characterization Experiment, Dr. Kermond has seen global climate change "up close"!  This talk will cover the latest findings from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as well as the early work of the U.S Global Change Research Program (USGCRP), in which Dr. Kermond participated from its inception in 1989 to its demise with the Bush Administration in 2000.  Most importantly, the talk will cover both what we know and what we do not know about our climate -- and the significance of both!

 

Some Good News for Courtney

Courtney JnBaptiste (picture below; see "G Whiz"), an Environmental Science student working in conjunction with Dr. Reiter, was recently awarded a competitive $4500 research grant by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation-sponsored Undergraduate Environmental Research Initiative administered by Lewis and Clark College, Oregon. Courtney will be working with Dr. Reiter to repeat a 15 year old survey of rare and endangered snails in Blue Spring run, Orange City FL, to see if water level and water quality changes over that time have altered population abundance or the habitat choices of these snails. Courtney's work will be one of several projects focusing on the run at Blue Spring as the developing Environmental Science program incorporates Blue Spring State Park as one of its primary field sites. They both look forward to getting wet very soon.

http://www4.cookman.edu/faculty/reiter/environews.htm
Last modified 10/28/08

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