Geotools for Spatial Literacy and Stewardship in Great Lakes Coastal Estuaries

Graduate Opportunity!
Geotools for Spatial Literacy and Stewardship in Great Lakes Coastal Estuaries
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Applicant must be an enrolled graduate student in an Environmental Studies program or Landscape Architecture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

NOTE: Deadline May 20

Seeking a bold and dynamic Environmental Studies graduate student in with interest in innovative geospatial technologies and learning tools, ideally familiar with coastal Great Lakes communities and ecosystems, to be part of an exciting place-based learning, outreach, and tool development project! Graduate support is available for the 2011-12 academic year, with possible continuation for 2 additional years.

The St. Louis River Estuary, a newly designated National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR), is nestled in the industrial Duluth-Superior port. In our current work, Stressor Gradients and Spatial Narratives for the St. Louis River Estuary, a joint MN-WI Sea Grant project (2010-12), we connect aquatic science research on human-based stressor gradients in the estuary with spatially explicit vignettes of local resource issues and place-based challenges to enhance spatial awareness and stewardship of the estuary.

The project is entering its 2nd year, in which we will be packaging the science and narratives into a pallet of place-based games and tours to encourage people to explore and engage in the estuary. At the centerpiece are “geo-quests” created with ARIS (Augmented Reality Interactive Storytelling), an iOS application developed by the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In the coming year we will partner with ESRI, a global leader in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) solutions, to develop the spatial narrative as an interactive digital mobile interface (a geotool) to engage citizens in place-based learning, spatial literacy, and stewardship.

The graduate assistant will work with Dr. Janet Silbernagel the coming academic year (2011-12) to:

• Carry on work from current project assistant to synthesize, package, and translate vignette content for use by web portal designer, geo quest designers, and larger joint project team
• Travel with Silbernagel and geo quest designers to ESRI Applications Prototype Lab in Redlands CA to co-design a prototype spatial narrative geotool
• Work with project team and ARIS developers to iteratively design and refine the geotool to ready it for piloting among citizens of WI coastal estuary communities.

Criteria:I am seeking an incoming or enrolled graduate student in an Environmental Studies program or Landscape Architecture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison to join our Landscape Conservation lab group with the following desired abilities and characteristics:

• Experience &/or interest in environmental education, place-based learning, and outreach programs
• Familiarity with or interest in coastal Great Lakes ecosystems and communities Coursework or training in social science or humanities research
• Competency with GIS and geospatial analysis
• Proficiency with a variety of digital media, graphics, and devices
• Familiarity with iOS application development or related programming/coding skills
• Proficient English speaking and writing skills
• Dynamic, engaged, energetic, and outgoing, …AND
• Hard-working, self-motivated, and committed to the project team & lab group!

This graduate position offers a 1/3-time assistantship for the coming academic year, which includes tuition remission, benefits, & travel for the project. In addition, we have a proposal pending with WI Sea Grant Institute that if funded, will provide two more years of graduate assistantship support to continue this work. Thus, I am looking for candidates who could be excited about potentially working on this project for three years!

Interested? Contact me at:

Janet Silbernagel, PhD
Chair, Conservation Biology and Sustainable Development Program,
Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies
And Associate Professor, Landscape Architecture
University of Wisconsin-Madison
http://www.nelson.wisc.edu/community/profile.php?p=194
jmsilber@wisc.edu, 608.890.2600

Please send me a brief (1 page) statement, including your graduate interests, academic and professional background, and names of 2 academic references, by FRI MAY 20, 2011. The position could begin as early as July 1, 2011 and as late as Sep 1, 2011. If not yet enrolled or admitted, a formal application to the Graduate School at the UW will require GRE, transcript(s), letters of reference and TOEFL (if not a native English speaker).