ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
Weekly Announcements
August 28, 2018
Events at Boston College
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Events in Boston
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Jobs and Internships
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Welcome Back Pizza Social – Friday
August 31, Devlin 201 12-1PM
Come to the Environmental
Studies Welcome Back Social to meet the new faces of Environmental Studies,
connect with faculty, and eat pizza!
Harvard University
Center for the Environment: "The Role of Ecosystem Diversity and
Heterogeneity in the Resilience of Terrestrial Ecosystems to Climate
Change" – September 6, 2018 Harvard University 3:30 PM
Amazon Forests, which comprise approximately 40% of world’s
remaining tropical forests and play a vital role in global water, energy and
carbon cycling, are predicted to experience both longer and more intensive dry
seasons by the end of the 21st century, However, the climate sensitivity of this
ecosystem remains uncertain: several studies have predicted large-scale
die-back of the Amazon, while several more recent studies predict that the
biome will remain largely intact. In this study, we use an individual-based
terrestrial ecosystem model to explore the sensitivity and ecological
resilience of Amazon forests to changes in climate. Our results show that water
stress operating at the scale of individual plants, combined with spatial
variation in soil texture, strongly influence the ecosystem’s resilience to
changes in dry season length. In contrast to existing predictions of either
stability or catastrophic biomass loss, our analyses indicate that, as a result
of ecosystem diversity and heterogeneity, the Amazon forest’s response to a
drying regional climate is likely to be an immediate, graded, heterogeneous
transition from high biomass moist forests to transitional dry forests and
woody savannah ecosystems. Further analyses show that two key characteristics
influencing the climatic sensitivity of individuals within the plant canopy are
their leaf phenology and plant hydraulic architecture. Finally, I discuss the
prospects for remote sensing measurements to improve predictions how changes in
climate will affect composition, structure and functioning of forest
ecosystems.
Sustainability Coordinator at
UW-Eau Claire – Applications Due September 7, 2018
A full-time, professional academic staff position is
available in Facilities management beginning on or after September 15, 2018.
The working title for this assignment is Sustainability Coordinator with an
official title in the Administrative Program Specialist title series. This is a
renewable assignment, contingent on performance. The starting salary will be
$50,000.
The Sustainability Coordinator is responsible for
coordinating and implementing sustainability related activities on campus
including the development, management and assessment of assigned coherent
campus-wide sustainability program. This
position reports to the Associate Director of Facilities and serves as the
liaison between University, local State, and national environmental organizations.
See the full position description at: https://www.uwec.edu/human-resources/employment-opportunities/job-openings/
MIT Seminar Series on
Environmental and Agricultural History: “Partly Green: The Past and Future of
Sustainable Business” – September 14, 2018 at
MIT 2:30-4:30 PM
Can capitalism become green without fundamental changes in
the rules of the market place? The last 30 years have been a revealing test of
the limits of corporate sustainability initiatives. In the United States, no
major environmental legislation has passed since1990, yet many businesses have
worked hard to become greener. How successful have their efforts been? What has
driven change, and what has stood in the way? The answers to those questions
offer important insight into what we still need to do to build a sustainable
economy.
This lecture is part of a year-long series sponsored by
MIT’s History faculty and program in Science, Technology, and Society. For
information on future lectures, see: https://history.mit.edu/lectures-and-seminars/seminar-environmental-and-agricultural-history
Volunteer at the Boston Local Food Festival
– September 16, 2018
The Boston Local Food Festival celebrates locally grown and
produced food. The most important
objective of the Boston Local Food Festival is to increase accessibility and
availability of healthy local food for all. Massachusetts eaters of all ages,
races, and socioeconomic levels will see, taste, and appreciate the variety of
healthy, delicious food choices that local specialty crops and products make
available to them in their own back yard!
We invite you to participate as volunteers in the 9th Annual
Boston Local Food Festival to be held on the Rose F. Kennedy Greenway on
September 16, 2018, 11am- 5pm. We seek committed, enthusiastic and responsible
people who would love to contribute, join in on the local food movement, meet new
folks, and have a lot of fun! Volunteering at our festival provides you great
networking opportunities with like-minded volunteers, vendors, sponsors and
attendees.
If you are interested in volunteering please fill out the
form at: http://bostonlocalfoodfestival.com/participate/volunteer-for-the-festival/ To learn more about volunteer positions
please contact Casey Songin, the Local Foods Coordinator, at: casey@sbnmass.org
Massachusetts
Historical Society Environmental History Seminar Series: “Native American
Environmental History” – October 9, 2018 at 5:15 PM
– FREE, RSVP REQUIRED
Lisa Brooks, Amherst College; Strother Roberts, Bowdoin
College; Ashley Smith, Hampshire College; Thomas Wickman, Trinity College
Moderator: Cedric Woods, Institute for New England Native
American Studies, University of Massachusetts Boston
This panel will explore the intersections of environmental
history and indigenous studies—the questions that each field engenders in the
other, as well as the perspectives that native and non-native scholars bring to
their research as they traverse both fields. Questions of race, gender,
geography, and sources enliven this growing body of scholarship. Join us for a
stimulating and wide-ranging conversation on these and other topics.
To RSVP: email seminars@masshist.org or call (617) 646-0579.
For more information on this lecture and future lectures in
this series, see: https://www.masshist.org/calendar/seminars/environmental-history
Keynote Address from Gina McCarthy,
Former EPA Administrator: “US Environmental Policy: What Has Been Lost, What
Can Be Gained” – October 23, 2018 Murray
Room – FREE
Gina McCarthy served as the head of the Environmental
Protection Agency under President Obama, leading historic progress to achieve
the administration’s public health and environmental protection goals and
Climate Action Plan. In 2015, McCarthy signed the Clean Power Plan, which set
the first-ever national standards for reducing carbon emissions from existing
power plants, underscoring the country’s commitment to domestic climate action
and spurring international efforts that helped secure the Paris Climate
Agreement. During her tenure, EPA initiatives cut air pollution, protected
water resources, reduced greenhouse gases and strengthened chemical safety to
better protect more Americans, especially the most vulnerable, from negative
health impacts. Internationally, McCarthy worked with the UN and WHO on a
variety of efforts and represented the U.S. on global initiatives to reduce
high risk sources of pollution. McCarthy now serves as Professor of the
Practice of Public Health in the Department of Environmental Health at Harvard’s
T.H. Chan School of Public Health and is Director of Harvard Chan’s Center for
Health and the Global Environment.
This event is being sponsored by the Environmental Studies
Program. For more information, see: http://events.bc.edu/event/gina_mccarthy_former_environmental_protection_agency_administrator#.W4VWds5KhaQ
Environmental Studies Photo Contest
– Submission Deadline December 12, 2018
Environmental Studies is holding our first photo contest
this year! Share with the Environmental Studies community a picture from
campus, your study abroad program, summer travels, internship, or hometown that
exemplifies a theme or concept from environmental studies. The deadline to submit your photo and
description of the photo is Monday, December 10. Top entries will be featured on our website
and the best photo of 2018 (voted on by our Steering Committee) will be printed
and framed for display in Devlin.
Photos can be submitted to envstudies@bc.edu.
Boston College
Environmental Studies Program
Devlin 213
Graduate Assistants:
Isabelle Kennedy
& Joseph Manning
ENVSTUDIES@BC.EDU
