Global Field Research to Local Stewardship: Programs and Opportunities

Good Morning. My name is Sean Britt and I am here with Maureen Lynch to discuss with you programs of networks and partnerships that my organization, Earthwatch Institute, has developed to advance stewardship around the world. I will begin by explaining existing programs available at Earthwatch Institute and Maureen will provide first hand accounts of how these programs have worked to advance stewardship.

Earthwatch Institute (EWI) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to engage people worldwide in scientific field research and education to promote the understanding and action necessary for a sustainable environment. EWI is the world's largest private international organization supporting scientific field research projects through public engagement. We have offices in Oxford, England, Melbourne, Australia, Tokyo, Japan, and Maynard, Massachusetts, USA.

The principal vehicle that Earthwatch uses to achieve its mission is the support of peer reviewed scientific field research through public participation. Our supporters (50,000 worldwide) have helped to fund research projects by volunteering their time and labor, and by paying their share of costs while working as part of a field research team.

This participant-funded model, which supports over 240 scientists on 130 Earthwatch projects in 50 countries annually, provides a unique and sustainable mechanism that serves as an effective means to address complex conservation issues worldwide. Not only does critically needed research take place, but the experience gained by those volunteers and scientists that participate fosters a profound appreciation of the nature of the issues, the value of science in helping shed light on environmental problems, and the need for active engagement of all individuals and sectors of society in working towards a sustainable future for all.

Beyond the participant supported research program, Earthwatch further engages people worldwide through workshops, seminars, electronic networks, publications, educational materials, and environmental activities within communities. Audiences targeted by Earthwatch programs include corporations, educators, community stakeholders, students, scientists, and conservation professionals.

Approximately 4,000 people participate on our projects each year. Of these participants, approximately 3,000 are self-paying volunteers and 1,000 are provided fellowships, enabling people to participate for specific educational purposes, capacity building, or engaging and motivating community leaders.

The Research Program at Earthwatch supports a diversity of research projects of high scientific merit worldwide, which address critical environmental and social issues at local, national, and international levels. Earthwatch is one of few significant sources of long-term funding for field-based research; 25 percent of the research projects have been supported for more than 5 years, and 10 percent have been supported for more than 10 years. Approximately one-third of all scientists Earthwatch supports are scientists early in their careers, women in science, and/or scientists from developing nations.

The Research Program at Earthwatch receives roughly 400 proposals each year from research scientists in need of funding and field assistance. The Program's staff conducts peer review, screens scientific and logistical details, and recommends projects for Earthwatch support. Each year, Earthwatch supports more than 250 scientists involved in 140+ projects that span the biological, physical, cultural and social sciences. Results of projects have been published in hundreds of scholarly, peer-reviewed journals worldwide.

One area that has been the focus of Earthwatch support since 1976 is protected areas. This support spans national parks, fish and wildlife reserves, regional parks and reserves, private reserves, research stations, the Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service, and NOAA. Over the past 26 years, 11, 446 Earthwatch volunteers have worked in these areas and overall financial support to these areas equals $6,595,075.

Earthwatch Institute is a leader in environmental and experiential education, recognized by the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA). Students, teachers, and educational administrators make up over 20 percent of the 4,000 volunteers each year. Through its Education Fellowship Program, Earthwatch provides funding for K-12 educators and high school students (16+) to participate in Earthwatch projects, and learn science "hands-on" by working directly with outstanding field scientists. The impact of a single fellowship is multiplied 100 fold as teachers return from the field to engage students in local conservation projects, make presentations to colleagues, address parents at PTA meetings, and receive community media coverage.

The Education Program at Earthwatch aims to provide educators with intensive, hands-on training in environmental field research, teamwork, problem solving, and use of new technologies. Earthwatch brings the excitement of scientific inquiry to classrooms and into homes by enabling teachers to report their experiences first hand upon their return from Earthwatch field research sites worldwide. The Education program seeks to educated teachers, students, and community members about environmental issues and local to global connections while also promoting collaboration and networking among teachers from different disciplines and communities.

Since 1998, over 2,000 teachers from K-12 schools have been energized by working with scientists at EWI field sites; are more aware of global and local environmental issues; and know how to achieve student involvement in local conservation projects. The Education Program at Earthwatch is able to provide resources for educators who participate on Earthwatch projects. These include: online teacher-developed lessons, multimedia resources, teacher-student collaborative projects, individual web pages, a network of international education professionals, local gatherings and workshops. On average, educator past team members share their experience with over 230 people once they return from the field. This is accomplished through classroom applications, community presentations, and media coverage.

Earthwatch Institute (EWI) launched a $5 million Conservation Program with the support of the Ford Motor Company Fund. The purpose of this grant is the development of five Conservation Research Initiatives (CRIs) in areas of exceptional conservation value around the world. The research sites are located in geographical areas of high biological and/or cultural diversity, and where there are appropriate conservation partners to work with.

At each Conservation Research Initiative (CRI), EWI channels funding and project support into the region to help implement a clearly defined conservation mission. The mission is defined in close collaboration with our chosen partners and other organizations and community leaders who are active in an area. Together, four or five 'flagship' conservation projects are established in the region. The projects are led by professional researchers, whom EWI will fund with grants for transport, equipment, food, and housing. In addition, EWI screens and provides up to 200 skilled adult volunteers each year at each CRI. EWI also offers fellowships to enable scientists, conservation professionals, educators, corporate staff, and community leaders to gain awareness and professional experience by working alongside scientists and volunteers at the CRIs.

An established baseline-monitoring program to assess progress and lessons learned at each project is also integral to each CRI. Results from baseline data and ongoing monitoring is shared not only with scientists in the region, but also with scientists associated with Earthwatch's other CRIs.

In 2000, Earthwatch received additional funding to explore an additional Conservation Research Initiative in the Yellowstone to Yukon ecoregion of the United States and Canada. During this time Earthwatch Institute with the help of the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative Society and the Biosphere Institute of the Bow Valley established a CRI in the Northern Crown of the Continent region, an area stretching from Banff to Waterton Lakes National Parks. The Northern Crown of the Continent is one of the most ecologically diverse areas in the Y2Y ecoregion, possessesing rich biodiversity and a complex system of habitats and linkages used for wildlife feeding, breeding and migration.

The most critical threat to the area's ecological integrity is increasing and unsustainable human use. While the awe-inspiring beauty of the region suggests harmony and connectivity, critical wildlife habitats are being lost and fragmented, with a corresponding domino effect on the life of the landscape. Roads, railways, and trails fragment the land and produce devastating effects: an increase in wildlife mortality rates due to vehicle and train traffic; a loss of habitat linkages to genetically different populations leading to increased in-breeding; and loss of habitat linkages to food sources resulting in a decrease of predator populations and increase in prey populations.

Working together in this endeavor are Earthwatch Institute, the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative Society and the Biosphere Institute of the Bow Valley. The Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative is a joint Canadian-U.S. network of over 600 organizations, foundations, scientists and conservation-minded individuals who have recognized the value of working together to restore and maintain the unique natural heritage of the Yellowstone to Yukon region and the quality of life it offers. The Biosphere Institute was formed in 1997 as an objective, non-political, non-profit society that makes ecosystem information available to decision makers as well as local citizens and also facilitates, encourages, supports and co-ordinates ecological, economic and social research pertinent to the region's ecosystem.

All three partners work collaboratively, contributing their organizations' strengths to promote a common vision for a sustainable ecoregion by actively engaging and empowering local communities while addressing key conservation priorities and supporting vital research.

In 2001, Earthwatch Institute, in partnership with the Skagit Watershed Council (SWC), established a Conservation Research Initiative (CRI) in the Skagit River Basin in northwestern Washington State, USA. The Skagit is one of the largest watersheds draining into Puget Sound and contains critical components of Puget Sound lowland and North Cascades Forest ecosystems in North America, while at the same time supporting large and varied agricultural and forestry economies.

Portions of the Skagit river valley landscape are managed by a diverse array of federal, state and local governments as well as private landowners. Fragmentation of landscape management presents a difficult hurdle to overcome in developing comprehensive knowledge of what natural and cultural resources are present in the landscape or their conservation status, and is a serious impediment to the development of a comprehensive conservation strategy for the landscape (Christensen et al. 1996).

The Skagit Watershed Council is a community partnership composed of 39 members, dedicated to harmonizing the conservation and restoration of salmon populations within the watershed. The mission of SWC is to "understand, protect and restore the production and productivity of the Skagit and Samish watersheds in order to support sustainable fisheries." Although the focus of the SWC on salmon is limited in scope, the SWC represents the most inclusive conservation and management organization in the watershed and whose area of interest is one of the broadest.

The goal of this partnership is to develop Earthwatch projects on priority research concerns of the Watershed Council and its members. These concerns include salmon conservation, global climate change and geology, pollution, landscape ecology, transboundary ecosystem management, wildlife projects, social and cultural projects.

Communities benefit in a number of ways from Earthwatch stewardship opportunities.

My name is Maureen Lynch and I live and work in Black Diamond, Alberta, Canada - a small ranching town in the Bow Valley of the Yellowstone to Yukon ecoregion. For the past year and a half, I have been working with the Towns of Black Diamond, Turner Valley and Okotoks on an environmental initiative that links community-based monitoring activities to decision making.

In August 2002, I had the opportunity to work with the Earthwatch Institute to document the oral history of the Skagit River in Washington state. Through its newly formed Rocky Mountain Conservation Research Initiative, Earthwatch was seeking fellowship representatives from the Bow Valley Corridor and surrounding area to increase awareness of Earthwatch activities and provide local experiences and resources to communities within the Bow Valley. The goal of the Skagit River Project was to add to the historical record of the watershed while pointing the way to resolving disagreements over how best to protect one of the last, best rivers in North America. Working closely with the Skagit Watershed Council and the Skagit Historical Museum, the Skagit River Project undertook oral history interviews with a variety of different groups.

I work with the communities of Black Diamond, Turner Valley and Okotoks to build community support for restoration of the Sheep River in the Bow Valley. The integration of conservation initiatives is formed through linkages with community-based monitoring and local decision-makers. I meet and work regularly with town councils, community groups, schools, community leaders, researchers, students and educators to integrate conservation initiatives within the communities. I work closely within the communities to help decision-makers implement local sustainable concepts.

I was interested in participating in the Earthwatch expedition because it was linked closely with my personal and professional goals of sustainable community living. The Skagit River Project provided an ideal opportunity to expand local scientific field research in the Yellowstone to Yukon ecoregion. The project provided insight into oral history projects and skills analysis for adaptation on potential projects on the Sheep River, and increased the network of resources that may benefit the communities of Turner Valley, Black Diamond and Okotoks as they continue to explore human history issues, present uses of the Sheep River and decision-making towards the planning and management of these issues.

The Earthwatch experience also provided a personal opportunity to make a difference by working with volunteers to restore the integrity of the Skagit River through the documentation of the oral history of fishing. I have been able to directly transfer the experience of networking, interviewing residents, and assembling and digitizing an archive of relevant photos, maps and other historical documents to my work with the Towns of Black Diamond, Turner Valley and Okotoks, to build community support for restoration of the Sheep River in the Bow Valley. This has been a great benefit, as watershed issues are the most pressing conservation issue in my communities.

Since my return from the Skagit River Project, my communities have express interest in recording their own personalized sense of the Sheep River watershed, to capture the sense of place and reflect their value of the resource. A full understanding of the watershed will help policy makers see the importance of defining policy problems, by contributing to point out convergent views on what is to be valued and protected in the watershed.

My participation in the Skagit River Project gave me the experience I needed in memorializing the role of the watershed within my communities. I learned how to help build cohesion, give credit to local environmental understanding and translate the rhetoric of restoration into action. I am now working to translate my experience with the Skagit Historical Society, the Skagit Watershed Council and existing community networks to form similar networks within my own communities.

Sharing my Earthwatch experience with my communities has sparked local interest in the role that history can play in helping to move forward with environmental planning in the local watershed. Specifically, I have been meeting with interested community partners to discuss the possibility of creating a digital archive of historical photographs and computerized maps of the Sheep River watershed's cultural landscape. I have learned through my Earthwatch experience that memorializing the role of the river can build community support for river restoration, help build cohesion, give credit to local environmental understanding, and translate the rhetoric of restoration into action.

The Skagit River Project provided an opportunity to recognize the local knowledge of environmental history and to the record the values of local watershed stewards such as commercial, sport, and tribal fishermen. The project helped demonstrate what values matter in environmental planning, and revealed the conditions under which such values change.

In July 2003, I participated as a fellow in Earthwatch's Wildlife and Recreation in the Rockies expedition, which focused on collecting information about trail users, campsites and wildlife use in the Crowsnest Pass of the Canadian Rockies. Located within the Crown of the Continent ecosystem in southwest Alberta, the Crowsnest Pass is part of one of the last remaining, ecologically intact areas in North America. Expedition work contributed to maintaining the ecological integrity of this valued landscape.

Landscape disturbance associated with random access recreation along the Livingstone Range in southwestern Alberta is significant and continues to intensify with local population growth trends. This region of public land offers a variety of outdoor recreational uses including off-highway vehicle (OHV) use, horseback riding, fishing, hunting, and random camping. Two user groups form the primary focus of the research: OHV users and fly fishers. There are some designated trails and campgrounds in this area but most activity occurs on random sites. The proliferation of trails and campsites has grown over the past 10 years and much of the use is concentrated along critical riparian zones and sensitive montane, sub-alpine and alpine environments. Human use and associated disturbance is recognized as a limiting factor to wildlife populations in the area. Additional human impacts include industrial resource extraction activities. Currently little information exists on the frequency, location and type of recreational human use that impacts local environments and wildlife.

Expedition objectives included: conducting an inventory and GPS mapping of all existing trails and campsites in the study area; conducting a user profile analysis through roadside interviews with trail and campsite users, and; determining intensity and temporal patterns of trail use including use of remote trail counters and direct observation.

The Wildlife and Recreation in the Rockies expedition assisted in the gathering of accurate human use data, the study of cumulative effects for the area, as well as conservation planning for landscape connectivity, and establishing predictive patterns of use. Results will help assess site-specific issues such as the impact on local scale species restricted to small habitat patches. Results will also improve existing landscape-scale cumulative effect analysis models to identify critical movement routes for large carnivores and will be integrated into conservation planning, facilitation the long-term persistence of carnivores in the Canadian Rockies. Information will also support policy change and improved land use regulations to prevent further degradation and disturbance to wildlife and sensitive environments.

It is expected that outdoor recreation activity in this area will continue to increase while the amount of wild land where wildlife may seek refuge from disturbance will decrease. The Earthwatch expedition provided an opportunity to collect data to protect biological diversity will still allowing opportunities for human outdoor recreation activities.

The first team of Wildlife and Recreation in the Rockies was a pilot for a program designed to provide opportunities for local stakeholders to participate on local research projects. The goal of the program is consistent with the mission of the conservation research initiative, to promote a common vision for a sustainable ecoregion. As the Conservation Officer for the Rocky Mountain Conservation Research Initiative, I participated on the project to observe this pilot team and facilitate a workshop between stakeholders, of whom included the research team.

The stakeholders of team one included a recent graduate from the University of Lethbridge, a board member from a local non-profit organization dedicated to wolf conservation, and the president of a local diverse stewardship society whose focus is the Crowsnest Forest. These individuals received a fellowship from Earthwatch Institute that provided the opportunity means for them to participate on the research project. In return for the fellowship, recipients must participate in a workshop and submit two reports that outline how their Earthwatch experience has translated back into their personal and professional lives within their own community.

The exchange of information and experiences I witnessed during my two weeks in Southwest Alberta demonstrated the value of fellowship interactions. Two of the stakeholder groups, the researchers and the President of the Stewardship Society, held misinformation about one another but were working individually for the same goal of sustainability in the Crowsnest Forest. One group thought the other was there to take away their use privileges, while the other group expected resistance to their work. During the course of two weeks, their misconceptions melted away, and both groups began working together for the common cause of assessing and evaluating the Crowsnest Forest.

As an Earthwatch Fellow, I helped to collect information related to human recreation and wildlife use in critical habitat areas. As part of a long-term research project aimed at providing conservation-planning tools for landscape connectivity and large mammal persistence, my daily field work offered the opportunity to spend time in the surrounding prairie landscape of snow-capped mountain interfaces, rolling foothills, wild flowers, and pristine rivers and streams. I had the opportunity to hike along transects that bisect each focal area and along identified OHV and hiking trails. I also collected GPS locations, installed and monitored remote trail counters and cameras and interviewed trail users.

The study area defined by the drainage of the Livingstone River in southwest Alberta is public (Crown) land and comprises a portion of the Rocky Mountain Forest Reserve. A range of highly significant environmental values including outdoor recreation, wildlife, fisheries, oil and gas, and forestry activities characterizes the area. The population growth associated with the greater Calgary region and the Rocky Mountain region in general is creating demands on this landscape that are calling into question the long term sustainability of the ecosystem and the communities that depend on it. The two biggest recreational users in the area (OHV users and fly fishers) both require road, trail and campsite access. There has been a marked increase in area use in the past several years, as seen by increased trail impacts and denuded campsites.

The methods and outcomes developed through this Earthwatch expedition will help to advance the field of practice as well as contribute to the academic theory of recreation ecology. As a fellow, I gained field experience that can be transferred to other projects and to other areas. The study area ties in with a number of local, regional and provincial planning projects. The research provided valuable baseline data and subsequently modeling and management recommendations regarding access management and defining limits of acceptable change within a cumulative effects framework.

A specific aim of the project was to promote a workable solution of conflicts over recreational land use. As a fellow, I was integrated into all data collection components of the research project. Data collection was divided into four tasks: interviews/surveys; OHV trail and random camping monitoring; data downloading and analysis; and, wildlife data collection. I conducted roadside interviews and surveys with trail and river users by asking a series of questions and documenting them onto data sheets. Interviews were conducted from various access points and from locations along the Livingstone River. Interview information provided the opportunity to develop a composite of demographics, place of origin and economic contributions of user groups.

Trail access points and random camping monitoring was conducted at identified access points to count trail users. I walked transects parallel to roads and rivers to identify random camping sites and hiked along transects that bisect the study area to identify OHV and hiking trails while collecting GPS locations. I helped to install and monitor remote trail counters and cameras. Data analysis required downloading data from remote trail counters and cameras to palm pilots and lap top computers. I also helped to produce data summaries and conduct preliminary analysis. Wildlife data collection required visiting wildlife track count stations to record wildlife use.

The Livingstone Range is located in the Crown of the Continent, an international ecosystem spanning the shared Rocky Mountain region of British Columbia, Alberta and Montana. The region constitutes one of the most biologically diverse areas remaining in North America. A full compliment of large carnivores and ungulates (grizzly bears, black bears, lynx, wolves, elk, moose, etc.) can be found in this region as well as smaller mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians of ecological importance (wandering garter snake, northern Leopard frog, long toed salamander, etc), and a diverse array of aquatic species (bull trout, cutthroat trout, etc.). Vegetation is composed of a diverse array of plant communities that exist in a compressed environmental gradient from prairie to alpine. Portions of this landscape constitute some of the richest areas in all of Canada, in terms of rare and threatened plant species. Valleys in the Crown of the Continent, including those found in the Livingstone Range, serve as important wildlife movement corridors connecting metapopulations of various species up and down the Rocky Mountain cordillera. Landscape vistas showcasing the prairie-mountain interface are dominated by flat prairie grasslands, rolling foothills littered with wild mountain flowers and dramatic snow-capped mountain peaks.

The opportunity to participate in the Wildlife & Recreation in the Rockies expedition allowed me to make a difference by working with other skilled volunteers to restore the integrity of the Crowsnest Pass. The experience of networking, interviewing recreational users, and collecting data was directly transferable to my work with the Towns of Black Diamond, Turner Valley and Okotoks to build community support for land restoration in the Bow Valley. Land use issues are a pressing conservation issue in my local community.

Thus far you have heard some background on existing volunteer and stewardship programs at Earthwatch Institute and some of the impacts these programs have had. As a Park Ranger working within a National Park, there are many opportunities for you. One such opportunity is for research funding. If you are currently conducting research or are contemplating a field research project that could incorporate the use of lay volunteers, Earthwatch is accepting proposals for the 2004 field season and I would be more than happy to discuss these opportunities after the session. If your proposal is accepted, there exists the potential for local fellows to be placed on your project, depending on the location of your project and available funds.

Another opportunity for park rangers is to apply for a fellowship to participate on a research project at one of our Conservation Research Initiatives. If received, you can experience first hand the process involved with incorporating local community members and stakeholders in your research, whether it be in or around National Parks. You could then use the knowledge and experience gained from your Earthwatch experience to build a smaller scale steward program in your home park or protected area.

We hope the background information, experiences, and anecdotes expressed in this paper provided insights and techniques you might use to advance resource stewardship in your area. Thank you for your time.