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2017 Fall | Global Change III: Addressing Social, Policy and Practical Issues

FALL 2017 | Global Change III: Addressing Social, Policy and Practical Issues    

 
COURSE SCHEDULE AND INSTRUCTORS:
 
  • Oct 5. Technological and Policy Innovations in the American Electric Power System. Richard Hirsh, Professor, History, VT.  
  • Oct  12. Ecosystem Health Integrated with Public Health. Kathleen Alexander, Professor, Fish & Wildlife Conservation, VT.
  • Oct 19. Sustainable Development in the Anthropocene.  Bruce Hull, Professor, Forest Research & Environmental Conservation, VT. 
  • Oct 26. Watershed Management to Reduce Pathogen Risk under Extreme Weather Events. Leigh-Anne Krometis, Assistant Professor, Biological Systems Engineering, VT.  
  • Nov 2. Managing the impacts of natural hazards.  Chris Zobel, Professor, Business Information Technology, VT. 
  • Nov. 9. Ecology, Extinction and Conservation of Fish and Fisheries in Relation to Global Change; a Case Study of Arapaima in the Amazon. Leandro Castello, AsstProfessor, Fish & Wildlife Cons, VT

 

Abstracts for sessions led by GCC Faculty Affiliates:

Sustainable Development in the Anthropocene

Led by Bruce Hull.

Humanity is on course to end poverty and welcome billions into the urban middle class. This
pivotal time will place enormous pressures on already stressed water, food, climate, urban, and energy systems. These challenges are so complex, uncertain, dispersed, and interconnected as to require new ways of problem solving. This presentation will review these challenges and innovative responses by businesses and cities. We will drill down into how Arlington, Virginia, is addressing energy-driven climate challenges and how Cargill and The Nature Conservancy are addressing agriculturally-driven Amazon deforestation.

 

Watershed Management to Reduce Pathogen Risk under Extreme Weather Events

Led by Leigh-Anne Krometis.

Over 1 million miles of rivers and streams and 18 million ponds, lakes, and reservoirs in the United States have been designated as “impaired”: they do not meet state-designated uses such as swimming or fishing. The most common cause of water body impairment and human health risk is elevated concentrations of fecal indicator organisms, such as E. coli. Given that storm water discharges of agricultural and urban pollution are the leading sources of microbial loadings to surface waters, more extreme rainfall patterns predicted with climate change are expected to increase risks to downstream users.

 

Managing the Impacts of Natural Hazards

Led by Chris Zobel.

As the earth’s population grows, so does the risk to communities, businesses, and critical infrastructure from natural hazards. Although we typically cannot prevent such hazards, we can try to manage the resulting societal impacts by developing approaches to mitigate against, prepare for, respond to, and recover from them. These can be difficult because of their inherent complexity and uncertainty; however, even small improvements in our ability to manage these impacts can save lives and preserve livelihoods. This presentation explores research focused on managing impacts, and it discusses how an interdisciplinary approach to problem solving can enhance the effectiveness of the solutions.

 

Ecology, Extinction and Conservation of Fish and Fisheries in Relation to Global Change: A Case Study of Arapaima in the Amazon

Led by Leandro Castello.

Arapaima are one of the largest and most historically and economically important species of
the Amazon Basin. With escalating pressures and in ective management, their populations have become overexploited and even locally extinct. Fortunately, the air-breathing behavior of arapaima allows monitoring them with unparalleled accuracy. Arapaima also possess migratory and reproductive characteristics that are conducive to sustainable management. In places where local fishers monitor arapaima populations and follow management rules, arapaima populations have been rebounding. The question remains as to whether increases in sustainably managed populations will compensate for losses from continued overexploitation and extinctions.