One kilometer. Or roughly ten football fields. That’s the extent of the area over which Karla Jarecke, a Ph.D. candidate in the College of Forestry’s Department of Forest, Ecosystems & Society can feasibly navigate her way through the trail-less HJ Andrews Experimental forest to collect the data she needs in a typical day of field work. Imagining a football field is perhaps not the best way to appreciate this feat, nor envision the complex topography that makes up this coniferous forest on the western flanks of the Cascade mountains, roughly 50 miles East of Eugene. But these characteristics are precisely what have made this forest valuable to scientists since 1948 and continue to make it the ideal place for Karla’s research.
Experimental watersheds like the HJ Andrews forest were established initially to understand how clear-cutting influenced forest drainage and other ecosystem processes such as regrowth of plants and change in nutrients in soils and streams. This was during the time when timber-take was increasing and we still had little understanding of its ecosystem effects. Karla’s work is also forward-thinking, but less on the lines of what will happen to drainage when trees are removed and more focused on understanding the availability of water for trees to use now and in the future. She wants to know what influence topography has on plant water availability in mountainous landscapes.
Meter deep soil pits at Karla’s field site.
Back to bushwhacking. The answer to Karla’s research question lies beneath the uneven forest floor. Specifically, in the soil. Soil is the stuff made up of weathered rock, decomposing organic material and lots of life but it is also the medium through which much of the water within a forest drainage moves. Across her study area, Karla has 54 sites where she collects data from sensors that measure soil moisture at two different depths. These steel rods send electrical currents into the ground, which depending on how quickly they travel can tell her how much water is present in the soil. She also keeps track of sensors that measure atmospheric conditions, like temperature and air humidity. This information builds on the incredible sixty-year data set that has been collected on soil moisture within HJ Andrews, but with a new perspective.
Digging soil pits on steep slopes occasionally required stacking logs at the base of a tarp to prevent the soil from sliding down the hill. Photo credit: Lina DiGregorio
Karla
explains that there have been long-standing assumptions surrounding elevation
gradients and their control on water availability in a forest system. This
understanding has led to modeling tools currently used to extrapolate soil
moisture across a landscape. But so far, her data show huge variability on surprisingly
small scales that cannot be explained by gradient alone. This indicates that
there are other controls on the spatial availability of soil moisture in such mountainous
terrain.
“We’re finding that model doesn’t work really well in places where soil properties are complicated and topography is variable. And that’s just the first part of my research.”
The next phase of Karla’s work seeks to evaluate tree stress in the forest and determine if there are any connections between this and the variability she is finding in soil moisture across spatial scales. True to the complex nature of the landscape, this work is complicated! But to Karla, it’s important. Growing up in the mid-west, Karla came to know water as “green” and when she moved West, first to fulfill an internship in Colorado and then to pursue her graduate work here in the Pacific Northwest, she was (and still is) amazed by the abundance of clean, clear rivers and streams. And it’s something she doesn’t ever want to take for granted.
Karla and her sister Stephani snowshoeing on Tumalo Mountain in the Cascade Range of central Oregon.
To find out more about Karla’s research and her journey from farming in Italy to studying soil, tune in on Sunday, October 27th at 7 PM on KBVR 88.7 FM, live stream the show at http://www.orangemedianetwork.com/kbvr_fm/, or download our podcast on iTunes.
As a 3rd year Master’s student in the Department of Forest Ecosystems & Society, Jasmine Brown is investigating diversity and inclusion in the field of natural resources. Her research has consisted of examining how language usage reinforces barriers to inclusion. For example, the usage of terms such as ‘women or minorities’ fails to capture identities that exist at the intersection of both categories. Efforts to include members of marginalized groups still fall short, as current language usage does not include people whose identities intersect multiple categories. As a Black woman working in forestry, Jasmine’s understanding and lived experience of the forestry profession is acutely different from the typical experience of a White male. Through her research, Jasmine is examining what it means to be a Black woman in forestry. Although the demographics of who is contributing to natural resources research is slowly changing, language usage in the field has remained somewhat static. Conventional language used in natural resources is not connected to the historical trauma associated with forest spaces and requires change moving forward.
Jasmine attending the Society of American Foresters 2018 National Convention in Portland as a part of their Diversity Scholars Program.
How Jasmine gathered the data
At the beginning of her project, Jasmine found that language used in natural resources research is ambiguous. She explains how in medical science, “a kneecap refers to a specific body part, and leaves no room for interpretation. However, in natural resources, the term ‘diversity,’ for example, might have multiple meanings depending on the context. It might refer to habitat diversity, biodiversity, and wildlife diversity in addition to diversity of social identities such as race, ethnicity, and gender”. Despite being excited to learn about how diversity and inclusion is discussed in natural resources, Jasmine struggled to find a comprehensive body of text to base her work on. So she ended up having to compile the sources on her own. While conducting a systematic review, she was able to develop targeted search terms to evaluate existing research about diversity and inclusion of researchers in natural resources. A systematic review is comparable to a literature review, and is a method typically used in medical and social science to collect and evaluate published research using specific criteria. The advantage of a systematic review is that it provides a method to systematically and methodically identify relevant literature.
Jasmine talking about her research while dressed in her forestry uniform at a Science Communication Event
To compile a body of literature for her systematic review, Jasmine looked for signifiers, or markers, of diversity in natural resources, such as ‘underrepresented, women, females, minorities.’ Researchers told Jasmine she would have difficulty locating articles on diversity in natural resources, but Jasmine found over 260 articles! The literature she found is a combination of published sources, including scientific journals, and unpublished sources, including magazines, presentations, conference papers, theses, and technical reports.
By evaluating the body of literature, she has identified which research methods are most popular for investigating diversity and inclusion in natural resources. Jasmine unearthed program evaluations by practitioners in the field, consisting of a summary of their successful implementation of diversity and inclusion programs. Methods used by practitioners in the field tended to be different than methods employed by scientific researchers. She observed that the scientific methods used by natural resources researchers have changed considerably over time. She also indicated that editorials about diversity and inclusion are abundant. Although authors may be highly educated researchers, the methods used to derive conclusions in editorial pieces are casual and less rigorous than in other standardized science disciplines.
Jasmine further investigated the institutions where authors were working, and found that the top two categories were government and academia. Then, she investigated what titles were held by the authors. Over time, position titles have become more difficult to classify. Early in the field of forestry, a researcher might be known as, ‘forester.’ Today, however, position titles are more complex and reflect hierarchical changes to the academic system. An academic title might consist of multiple categories, such as, ‘assistant professor of forestry in the department of agriculture.’
While authors are adept at identifying barriers to diversification, the application of ideas to increase diversity and inclusion is lagging behind. Much more work is required to improve implementation of ideas that will increase diversity and inclusion in natural resources.
A plan for action
Jasmine is looking forward to presenting her body of work to the larger community. She intends to present her work at the 35th Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences (MANRRS) Conference. She also intends to publish at least 1 of 2 articles from her thesis. Her dataset of more than 260 articles will be made public after her graduation. Her hope is that other researchers trying to locate published articles about diversity and inclusion in natural resources will be able to access the information she has compiled and won’t need to spend over eight months searching for it themselves. She has recognized that the interest and need for writing about diversity and inclusion is increasing, and hopes to move the field, and the language it is built upon, forward.
Why did Jasmine want to study this topic?
As a senior undergraduate student studying forestry, Jasmine stepped out of her comfort zone and took several sociology classes about sustainability. These courses served as an illuminating accompaniment to her forestry degree, where she was introduced to forests as living ecosystems. Previously, from a forestry perspective, she was accustomed to thinking about trees in terms of their quantitative measurements and economic benefit to society. It was during this time that she became curious about how language is wielded in the forestry discipline.
Jasmine has been working with the U.S. Forest Service for close to four years. In this environment, she recognized the importance of having difficult conversations, and it is these conversations that pushed her towards grad school for a Master’s degree. Jasmine chose OSU’s Forestry & Ecosystem because of the flexibility of the program and its relevance to her specific interests concerning the ‘human dimension’ of natural resources. She hoped to pursue research at the intersection of race, gender, and ethnicity, in part, because her identity is a part of everything she does. With this in mind, her Ethnic Studies graduate minor was a perfect fit. Jasmine has assembled an interdisciplinary team with faculty from forestry, wildlife, ethnic studies and a research librarian. She has two advisors: Brenda McComb from Forestry and Dana Sanchez from Fisheries and Wildlife. She pitched her research idea about the use of language in natural resources to her advisors, and they expressed excitement about its novelty and potential for impact.
Jasmine in front of the Student Experience Center after participating in the 4th Social Justice Tour of Corvallis
Future direction
Jasmine’s realization that her identity as a Black woman has been a barrier does make her feel more invested in and passionate about her research. The feedback and pushback she has received during her Master’s research has informed her desire to continue in academia. Now, she identifies as both a forester and a social scientist. After completing her degree, Jasmine will pursue a PhD in a related discipline, where she will continue to drive change surrounding language usage in natural resources research. Jasmine hopes to continue inspiring youth of color to become natural resource professionals.
Jasmine’s research has made her realize how important is it to consider previous scientific texts as data. Considering how many articles she’s been able to find, she places value on looking at the big picture. While it may not be easy to try evaluating criteria that have surely changed over time, Jasmine gladly accepts the challenge. As a budding researcher, her Master’s degree has taught her that there is much to be learned from previous trends when it comes to scientific standards and language use regarding diversity and inclusion in natural resources.
Join us at 7 pm on Sunday, August 4th, 2019, to hear more about Jasmine’s research and her experience as a Master’s student at OSU. Stream the show live on KBVR Corvallis 88.7FM or check out the episode as a podcast after a few weeks.
The Hermit Warbler is a songbird that lives its life in two areas of the world. It spends its breeding season (late May-early July) in the coniferous forests of the Pacific Northwest (PNW) and migrates to Central America for the winter. Due to the long journey from the Central America to the PNW, it is dependent on food resources being available throughout its journey and when it arrives to breed. The environmental conditions across its range are tightly linked to habitat resources, and unfavorable climatic conditions, such as those becoming less frequent due to climate change, can negatively affect bird populations. Changes in bird populations are not always easy to notice, especially with small songbirds that live high in tree canopies. Studying birds for one or a few years may not be enough to signal the change in their well-being.
A Hermit Warbler singing on a lichen-covered branch in the forest canopy. Male Hermit Warblers will defend their territories ferociously against other males during the breeding season. H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest, May 2017.
Fortunately, long term data sets are becoming more available thanks to long term study programs. For example, the Willamette National Forest in Oregon is home to H. J. Andrews Experimental Forest (the Andrews). Designated by the USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station, the Andrews forest hosts many forest research projects and has been monitored since 1948. In 1980, it was became one of the National Science Foundation’s Long Term Ecological Research sites ensuring that it will remain a resource for scientists for years to come. Bird surveys at the Andrews began 11 years ago, and researchers at Oregon State University are beginning to draw connections between changing climate and bird communities in relation to the forest’s structure and compositions.
H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest, where long-term bird study is launched in 2009 by Drs. Matt Betts and Sarah Frey. The forest sits on the moist foothills of western Cascades in Willamette National Forest.
One of these researchers, Hankyu Kim PhD student in the Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, is using this data to study the Hermit Warbler and other bird species at the Andrews. Hankyu is interested in how and why bird communities are changing over time. With 11 years of bird observations and extensive temperature data, he is attempting to estimate how population of birds persist in the forests. To begin approximating how current climate effects birds, we need to have an idea about bird communities in the past. Past conditions can help us explore how birds might respond to future climate scenarios. Without the effort of many researchers before him to monitor birds, his investigation would be impossible.
Bird surveys are conducted via point counts. Researchers stand at a point count station for 10 minutes and count all bird species they see and hear. Listen to a hermit warbler and some other background birdsongs recorded at H.J Andrews in June 2017.
Hankyu realized the importance of long-term data after reviewing the 45-years of wintering waterbird surveys collected by the Birdwatching Club at Seoul National University, Korea during his time as an undergrad. The group took annual trips to the major Rivers and Coastal Areas, and in just a couple decades the members of the club had recorded declines and disappearances of some species that were once common and widespread. This finding inspired Hankyu to pursue graduate school to study unnoticed or uncharismatic species that are in danger of decline. Every species plays a critical role in the ecosystem, even if that role has not yet been discovered.
Tune in on Sunday May, 19 at 7 pm to hear more about Hankyu Kim’s research with birds. Not a local listener? Stream the show live or catch up when the podcast episode is released.
The following article was written by Pipiet Larasatie and edited by Kristen Finch.
Pipiet Larasatie is a third year PhD student in Wood Science and Engineering Department, College of Forestry, at Oregon State University. Her friends and close colleagues describe her as “Ms. Social” and “Ms. Doing-All.”
Pipiet working in the Forest Sciences Dept. University of Helsinki in 2017.
As a woman and a first generation student in her male dominated family, Pipiet has a high passion on empowering young females. For this reason, Pipiet switched her research focus from wood centric to gender diversity in the forest sector.
So far, Pipiet’s research involved collaboration with folks at OSU (her advisor and a Master’s student), but also international collaboration with a professor and a Master’s student in University of Helsinki, Finland. During this part of the project, the team interviewed female executives in the global forest sector companies about gender aspects in the North American and Nordic industries. Some trends became apparent across interview responses. Their respondents agreed that the North American and Nordic forest sector is a historically male-oriented and male-dominated industry, which can lend itself to characteristics of a chauvinistic and masculine culture. This also was clear: to be successful in the male-dominated work setting, young females need a support on multiple levels e.g. good bosses/leaders, mentors, and networks. The interviewees also voiced that education is important when finding a niche in the workplace and for making young females more competitive in the job market.
Pipiet with one of her mentees joining a faculty led summer course, “The Forest Sector in Alpine Europe.” Photo shows group at University of Primorska, Slovenia.
Tune in to KBVR Corvallis 88.7FM to hear our special segment with Pipiet at 7 pm on March 3, 2019. Pipiet present her research findings alongside pop songs from Beyoncé and Alicia Keys. Later, Pipiet will be accompanied by one of her mentees, Taylor Barnett, a third year undergraduate student studying Natural Resources at College of Forestry. Taylor will share her experience with mentorship programs at OSU and how these mentorship has aided her professional development.
Not a local listener? No sweat! Stream the show live or check out the podcast version of this special episode.
A traditional Persian tanbour. Photo credit: nasehpour.com
While playing the tanbur in his native country of Iran, tonight’s guest Yahya Mousavi found the wooden instruments are sensitive to the moisture and it cannot produce high quality sounds in humid conditions. The tanbur, a traditional Persian string instrument, is the ancient ancestor of the guitar with a pear-shaped body composed of wood, a long neck, and many strings. In his third year of undergraduate studies, Yahya begin to develop a suitable substitute for wood in making musical instruments. He shared his idea with his professor. The professor was excited about the idea and allowed Yahya to pursue the research, which resulted in many publications, such as [1-3], both in English and Persians, as well as the manufacturing a tanbur, a setar, and a tar (the names of some Persian musical instruments) from polymeric composites, rather than wood.
It seems that wood science has always piqued Yahya’s interest, but now instead of focusing on instruments, he is focusing on an issue with a much broader impact – developing a safe, sustainable adhesive for wood composite production. Wood-composites such as particleboard and plywood wood are mainly used to construct buildings, make furniture, cabinetry, etc.; however, in order to make these wood composite panels, an adhesives have to be used to hold all the layers together. The problem is, the adhesive that has been used historically and is currently in use contains the toxic chemical formaldehyde, which is known to cause different cancers and mental disorders. The California Air Resources Board (CARB) passed a regulation on limiting formaldehyde emission from wood-based products used and sold in California in April 2007. A national regulation of limiting formaldehyde emission, ‘‘formaldehyde standards for composite wood products act,’’ was signed into law on July 7, 2010.
This has been the focus of Yahya’s PhD research for the past three years in Dr. Kaichang Li’s lab in the Department of Wood Science and Engineering in Oregon State University’s College of Forestry. The first goal of the research was to find a safe replacement for formaldehyde-based adhesives. Currently, isocyanates is being used as a replacement, but poses similar health risks. Secondly, the Li Lab was seeking to find something renewable. Yahya set out to find if he could fulfill both of these goals with soybean-based adhesives. In order to do so, he would need to find a way to make an adhesive that could pass all the standard requirements for use, which requires various water soaking tests. The main issue with soy-based adhesives was that they are not water resistant.
Close-up view of plywood board. Photo credit: apawood.org
Success for soy-based adhesives
In his research, Yahya was able to crosslink the functional groups of soybean flour using a polymer named poly (glycidyl methacrylate-co-styrene) (PGS). To do this, poly (glycidyl methacrylate-co-styrene) (PGS) emulsions were synthesized through a free radical initiated emulsion polymerization of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and styrene. The PGS was characterized with FTIR, and investigated as a curing agent for soybean flour (SF)-based wood adhesives. Seven-ply plywood panels were prepared with the SF-PGS adhesives and were evaluated for their water resistance through a three-cycle water-soaking test. Effects of the PGS/SF weight ratios, hot press temperature, hot press time, and usage of NaOH on the water resistance of the resulting plywood panels were investigated. Plywood panels made with the SF-PGS adhesives met the industrial requirement for interior plywood. More information about this research can be found in [4].
In another study, Yahya was able to develop a cold-set wood adhesive based on soy protein isolate. This adhesive was able to pass all the standard requirements for exterior plywood such as the two-cycle boil test, dry shear test, and cyclic-boil shear test. Now, Yahya is working to modify this cold-set adhesive for manufacturing of cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels, which are a novel wood product recently introduced to the construction industry and it is expected to grow very fast.
While Yahya is not personally involved in the translation of his research into industry practices, the ultimate goal would be for these soy-based adhesives to be widely used by the wood composite industry reducing widespread exposure to toxic chemicals.
Following passion with purpose
Yahya enjoying one of Oregon’s many waterfalls at Silver Falls State Park.
Yahya is an engineer by trade and began his career in polymer engineering when obtaining his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science at the Islamic Azad University (IAU)in Tehran, Iran. (Fun fact: IAU is the fifth largest university in the world based on an enrollment of over 1.5 million students!?) Yahya hopes to one-day have a faculty position where he can continue conducting polymer research on meaningful projects.
Join us on Sunday, October 14 at 7 PM on KBVR Corvallis 88.7 FM or stream live to learn more about Yahya’s quest to find a safe, sustainable wood adhesive alternative and his journey to graduate school at Oregon State.
Examining the effect of climate change on stream ecosystems
Oak Creek near McDonald Dunn research lab. The salamander and trout in the experiments were collected along this stretch of creek.
As a first year Master’s student in the lab of Ivan Arismendi, Francisco Pickens studies how the changing, warming climate impacts animals inhabiting stream ecosystems. A major component of stream ecosystem health is rainfall. In examining and predicting the effects of climate change on rainfall, it is important to consider not only the amount of rainfall, but also the timing of rainfall. Although a stream may receive a consistent amount of rain, the duration of the rainy season is projected to shrink, leading to higher flows earlier in the year and a shift in the timing of the lowest water depth. Currently, low flow and peak summer temperature are separated by time. With the shortening and early arrival of the rainy season, it is more likely that low flow and peak summer temperature will coincide.
A curious trout in one of the experimental tanks.
Francisco is trying to determine how the convergence of these two events will impact the animals inhabiting streams. This is an important question because the animals found in streams are ectothermic, meaning that they rely on their surrounding environment to regulate their body temperature. Synchronization of the peak summer temperature with the lowest level of water flow could raise the temperature of the water, profoundly impacting the physiology of the animals living in these streams.
How to study animals in stream ecosystems?
Salamander in its terrestrial stage.
Using a simulated stream environment in a controlled lab setting, Francisco studies how temperature and low water depth impact the physiology and behavior of two abundant stream species – cutthroat trout and the pacific giant salamander. Francisco controls the water temperature and depth, with depth serving as a proxy for stream water level.
Blood glucose level serves as the experimental readout for assessing physiological stress because elevated blood glucose is an indicator of stress. Francisco also studies the animals’ behavior in response to changing conditions. Increased speed, distance traveled, and aggressiveness are all indicators of stress. Francisco analyzes their behavior by tracking their movement through video. Manual frame-by-frame video analysis is time consuming for a single researcher, but lends itself well to automation by computer. Francisco is in the process of implementing a computer vision-based tool to track the animals’ movement automatically.
The crew that assisted in helping collect the animals: From left to right: Chris Flora (undergraduate), Lauren Zatkos (Master’s student), Ivan Arismendi (PI).
Why OSU?
Originally from a small town in Washington state, Francisco grew up in a logging community near the woods. He knew he wanted to pursue a career involving wild animals and fishing, with the opportunity to work outside. Francisco came to OSU’s Department of Fisheries and Wildlife for his undergraduate studies. As an undergrad, Francisco had the opportunity to explore research through the NSF REU program while working on a project related to algae in the lab of Brooke Penaluna. After he finishes his Master’s degree at OSU, Francisco would like to continue working as a data scientist in a federal or state agency.
Tune in on Sunday, June 24th at 7pm PST on KBVR Corvallis 88.7 FM, or listen live at kbvr.com/listen. Also, check us out on Apple Podcasts!
Agroforestry, the practice of growing crops or tending livestock while purposefully managing trees on the same parcel of land, can provide security of fuel wood and food in rural areas of the developing world. Increased access to healthcare in many African countries has spurred population growth over the past couple of decades. Malnourishment remains a problem, and as the number of people per acre of farmland increases, maintaining food security may require changes in agricultural practices.
As a second-year PhD student in the Forest Ecosystems and Society department in the College of Forestry, Sonia Bruck knows this isn’t a simple task. Communities around the world who are exposed to agroforestry practices tend to adopt them at low rates, which often depend on residents’ wealth and education. Working with the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), a non-governmental organization in Kenya, Sonia will travel to the town of Mbola in the Uyui district of eastern Tanzania in September. She will be living there for seven months, examining how and why these and other factors might play a role in how people decide to adopt agroforestry practices. A Tanzanian regional office of ICRAF has already promoted the intercropping of pigeon pea and cassava with Gliricidia sepium (a nitrogen fixing tree), but despite this being a biologically sound strategy, it hasn’t caught on among everyone in Mbola. So if there are cultural or socioeconomic barriers to adopting these techniques, she wants to know about them.
An agroforestry system in North Carolina – Longleaf pine alley cropping, where corn and soybeans were alternated near an open agricultural field.
Knowing that wealthier villagers are able to place more risk into implementing a new agroforestry technique might be only one facet. Health, household division of labor, number of children per household, and access to food may also factor into whether people decide to adopt this strategy. Sonia is developing a quantitative survey to gather data like these, and plans to administer it to 600 residents once she arrives in Mbola. She will then analyze the survey data and schedule focus groups to allow residents to provide more context, especially if there are relationships between variables that don’t seem to make sense. According to rational choice theory, we’re all rational actors – so Westerners like us might be missing important cultural preferences that could guide farmers’ agricultural decisions in rural Tanzania. Sonia hopes that her findings will help ICRAF target households that could benefit from implementing agroforestry.
(From left to right) Jeremais Mowo (Regional Coordinator for Eastern and Southern Africa), Sonia Bruck, and Badege Bishaw (her adviser) at ICRAF.
When Sonia departs for Tanzania, she certainly will not be a stranger to international travel. Her father, a professor of plant pathology, taught a field course in the Peruvian Amazon, and she first got to tag along as a fourteen-year-old. The heat, humidity, and occasional threat of vampire bats didn’t seem to deter her when she studied abroad for a summer in Brazil, as an undergraduate at Appalachian State University majoring in Sustainable Development and Environmental Studies. She has also traveled extensively across Central and South America, and recently to the Philippines, Thailand, and Nepal to catch up with friends stationed in the Peace Corps and learn more about local cultures.
Sonia near Silver Falls, Oregon
To hear more about Sonia’s research and experiences traveling and living abroad, be sure to tune in to KBVR Corvallis 88.7 FM this Sunday May, 27 at 7 pm, stream the live interview at kbvr.com/listen, or find it in podcast form next week on Apple Podcasts.
Kristen Finch interviewing Francisco Guerrero for this special episode. (Photo by Adrian Gallo)
This week on Inspiration Dissemination we will be featuring a previous guest: Francisco Guerrero, a PhD student in the Department of Forest Engineering, Resources, and Management. Francisco’s first interview aired on October 18, 2015, and we called him back for a follow-up because he has been selected for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Mass Media Science and Engineering Fellowship. As a fellow, Franco will be writing feature stories about climate change and health for CNN en Español. Part of the fellowship will involve helping with film production, as well. FUN FACT last time Franco was on the show, he told us that he always wanted to be a movie producer. Franco will take this amazing opportunity during the final push for his PhD research to enhance his science communication skills and gain experience in production and video broadcasting.
This special interview will begin at 6:30 pm on May 6, 2018. We will be asking Franco about the application process, his responsibilities as a fellow, and his goals for the fellowship. After our interview with Franco, we will rebroadcast his first interview on Inspiration Dissemination at 7 pm.
Tune in to KBVR Corvallis 88.7 FM at 6:30 pm to hear about the AAAS Fellowship and learn about Franco’s research in the College of Forestry. Not a local listener? No sweat! Stream the show live on line or hear the podcast next week.
Franco wants to hear from you! Tweet him with ideas for CNN Español, specifically stories about Climate Change and Health. @fjguerrerob
The folks behind the episode: Francisco Guerrero, Kristen Finch, and Lillian Padgitt-Cobb. (Photo by Adrian Gallo)
“The Christmas Song” or “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire” by Bob Wells and Mel Tormé is an iconic song in American culture, but most Americans will never experience a chestnut roast (at least not with American chestnuts).
A mighty blight
The American chestnut was a widespread North American native tree that covered nearly 200,000 miles of Appalachian forest. In 1904, the American chestnut trees in the Bronx Zoo were dying from a then unknown disease, Chestnut Blight. In the next forty years, Chestnut Blight spread across the estimated 4 billion American chestnut trees. Now American Chestnut trees are seen only as giant stumps, juveniles never reaching maturity, and rarely, adult fruit-bearing trees.
Since the decline of the American chestnut, Appalachian forests have changed. Chestnuts have been replaced by oaks, and it is likely that many organisms that relied on the chestnut trees for food or shelter have had to adapt to new conditions or have been displaced. The loss of the chestnut also led to the loss of financial income for many Appalachian people. In addition to chestnuts as a food source, the American chestnut provided decay resistant timber and tannins for tanning hide. The American chestnut and its decline is remembered through oral and written history. Members of older generations from Appalachia tell stories of enormous trees and later forests of white wooden chestnut skeletons.
Restoring the chestnut
Josh skiing in the mountains of Big Sky, Montana.
The restoration of the chestnut is an active project that faces many challenges. First, few Americans have seen an American chestnut tree, and few are familiar with their decline via Chestnut Blight. Since the restoration of the American chestnut would require policy changes and action across 200,000 miles, spanning multiple state governments, it is necessary to assess the extent the public might disfavor or favor this restoration. Our guest this week,Josh Petit from Forest Ecosystems and Society, is seeking to understand the attitudes of Americans toward the chestnut restoration. In particular, Josh is surveying a sample of the US population to compare attitudes toward a controversial method of chestnut restoration, the use of genetic engineering.
Ways and Means
You may be familiar with genetic engineering to modify the genome of an organism to achieve a specific goal. Many of the crops we eat have in some way been modified to aid harvest, growth, and/or resistance to pests and disease. The methods for restoring the American chestnut are:
Selective breeding with related, blight-resistant Asian chestnuts
Modifying the genome of American chestnuts with Asian or other related chestnut genes (cisgenics)
Modifying the genome of American chestnuts with foreign genes or genes from wheat (transgenics)
Josh conducting research during a study abroad program in tropical North Queensland, Australia.
It is important to assess the attitudes of the public to transgenics because the introduction of genes from wheat has been the most successful method at enhancing resistance toward chestnut blight. Recently, negative media has led to the misunderstanding that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have adverse effects on consumers (humans) and ecosystems. However, these claims are not based in sound science and have been refuted. Although GMOs are being supported as alternatives to crop and forest species extinction, ultimately chestnut restoration relies on majority vote in favor or against a specific strategy. Thus, assessing attitudes toward restoration methods is tantamount to restoration efforts.
The Guy for the Job
A native of Ohio, Josh Petit attended Xavier University and majored in Political Science. He credits a Semester at Sea for broadening his world view and exposing him to different cultures. He learned that culture is important in all aspects of daily life. In retrospect, perhaps it is no surprise that he is currently studying an iconic tree and how culture has driven attitudes toward its restoration.
Josh participating in a Fijian traditional village celebration and homestay–taking turns playing guitar.
Josh became interested in ecology, biology, and the interface of the two with humans while working for Q4 International Marketing an ecotourism company in Panama. This lead him to pursue a Master’s in Natural Resources with a marine ecology focus from Virginia Tech. However, his most recent work withOregon Parks and Recreation Department lead him to pursue a PhD at Oregon State University. With the State Parks, Josh conducted surveys in Oregon Parks and sought to connect behavior, impacts, and social science to ecology and recreation. Now at Oregon State University, Josh is working with Mark Needham andGlenn Howe to understand the drivers of attitudes toward using biotechnologies for restoring American chestnut trees.
Hear more about Josh’s research and his journey to now this week on Inspiration Dissemination. Tune in to KBVR Corvallis 88.7FM on Sunday July, 30 at 7 pm, or live stream the show.
If you wander forests of the Oregon Coast Range you might encounter a strange sight: exclosures made of timber and steel-braided wire, standing in a clear-cut forest. These exclosures, which stand 100-feet long, 50-feet wide and 8-feet high, are the research and work of Thomas Stokely, a PhD candidate in the department of Forest Ecosystems & Society in the College of Forestry. The exclosures were constructed to study the impact of deer and elk grazing on tree growth, and to address a larger research question in forestry management: What does intensive forest management mean for biodiversity?
Completion of exclosure construction in Oregon Coast Range
To study the impact of deer and elk on commercial tree growth, Thomas constructed constructed 28 stands in which a team of researchers manipulated the intensity of herbicide spray treatments in each area (non-sprayed, light, moderate and intensive herbicide treatments). For six years, under the direction of his adviser Matthew Betts, Thomas and has measured plant communities, arthropods, herbivory and plantation development inside these exclosures and in open plots where wildlife is allowed free access.
PhD student, Thomas Stokely cutting fence rows through logging slash and large stumps to construct wildlife exclosures
The exclosure research in the Oregon Coast Range relates to Thomas’s goals as a scientist who’s invested in understanding how industry impacts biodiversity. “As the world population grows, we need more resources,” he said. “We want to value the product, but we also value biodiversity and wildlife habitat. Is there a way we can manage for both timber production and wildlife habitat? If so, what role do biodiversity and wildlife play in the management of natural resources? If management alters biodiversity or excludes wildlife, what are the implications for ecosystem functioning?” These are questions that continue to drive his research and his career path.
Mature Roosevelt elk bulls browsing through a plantation with exclosure in the background
Thomas has been interested in plant-animal interactions and the environment since he was a child. Growing up on a horse farm in southwest Missouri, he watched horses grazing and wondered about their relationship with the habitat in and around the farm. He first considered studying the policy side of humanity’s relationship with the natural world, but political science wasn’t a good fit—he wanted to pursue a more hands-on approach to studying biodiversity. After reading about the reintroduction of wolves in Yellowstone, he knew he wanted to work directly with land and habitat management. He earned a BS in environmental science at University of Missouri before coming to Oregon State. Upon completing his PhD, Thomas plans to work in applied ecology where he hopes to use science to guide land management and conservancy practices.
Tune in to hear our conversation with Thomas Stokely on Sunday, November 13th at 7:00 pm on 88.7 FM KBVR Corvallis or listen live online.
