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New Directions in the Earth Sciences and the Humanities
Fran Lightsom of the Woods Hole Field Center (WHFC) attended a workshop sponsored by the New Directions Initiative on March 22 to 24 at the Columbia University Biosphere2 Conference Center in Oracle, AZ. The workshop brought together scientists, scholars, and managers from universities, government agencies, and nongovernmental organizations, as well as a producer of a multimedia production company. Among the group were members of seven interdisciplinary research teams that will continue working through the year. One New Directions team, "Visualizing a Gulf of Maine Digital Library," includes Lightsom, Fausto Marincioni, and Tom Aldrich (WHFC); Chris Brehme and Nathan Michaud of the Island Institute in Rockland, ME; and Paul Schroeder, Michael Hermann, Jennifer Pixley, Jefferson White, and Michael Grillo of the University of Maine, Orono. The other interdisciplinary teams are also working on water-related projects, including communication between scientists and coastal communities, management of urban waterways, management of salmon restoration, and evaluation of the use of models in creating water policy.The workshop enhanced cooperation among the New Directions teams, especially those working on communication between marine scientists and the residents of coastal communities. All seven teams also serve as case studies in developing skills and techniques for addressing interdisciplinary environmental problems. USGS participation in the Gulf of Maine Digital Library team supports two Coastal and Marine Geology Program (CMGP) projects. For the Regional Synthesis project, the team will contribute to a future regional synthesis for the Gulf of Maine. The digital library work on information organization and access is a primary concern of the CMGP's National Knowledge Bank project. The goal of the New Directions Initiative is to encourage truly interdisciplinary approaches to environmental problems. New Directions is based at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, CO, and sponsored by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Science Foundation (NSF), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the USGS. More information can be found on the New Directions Web site.
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in this issue:
Ground-Truthing Coral Reef Maps Honduras Coral Reef Documentary Online
New Directions Workshop Mendenhall Fellow Presents Talk  |
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U. S. Department of the Interior | U.S. Geological Survey
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