The need for sound ecological science has escalated alongside the rise of the information age and “big data” across all sectors of society. Big data generally refer to massive volumes of data not readily handled by the usual data tools and practices and present unprecedented opportunities for advancing science and informing resource management through data‐intensive approaches. The era of big data need not be propelled only by “big science” – the term used to describe large‐scale efforts that have had mixed success in the individual‐driven culture of ecology. Collectively, ecologists already have big data to bolster the scientific effort – a large volume of distributed, high‐value information – but many simply fail to contribute. We encourage ecologists to join the larger scientific community in global initiatives to address major scientific and societal problems by bringing their distributed data to the table and harnessing its collective power. The scientists who contribute such information will be at the forefront of socially relevant science – but will they be ecologists?

No abstract

No abstract

Human activities affect Earth's life support systems so profoundly as to threaten many of the ecological services that are essential to society. To address this challenge, a new science agenda is needed that integrates people with the rest of nature to help chart a more sustainable trajectory for the relationship between society and the biosphere. This paper describes Earth Stewardship, an initiative of the Ecological Society of America to provide the scientific basis for actively shaping trajectories of social‐ecological change to enhance ecosystem resilience and human well‐being. Principles for moving toward these goals include simultaneous attention to multiple scales and issues; consideration of both ecological and socioeconomic consequences; alignment of incentives with stewardship behavior; strengthening peoples' connections to valued places; and using demographic transitions as new opportunities for stewardship. Past experience provides guidelines for fostering Earth Stewardship. Early attention to sustainable pathways before problems emerge generally provides more cost‐effective solutions than attempting to remediate entrenched problems. Defining sustainable pathways by assessing tradeoffs among alternative options requires careful attention to fine‐scale processes, interactions, and feedbacks and to larger‐scale controls and constraints. Many opportunities occur locally, through development of practices that match the properties of resources with the needs of their users. Substantial challenges remain at larger scales, including maintaining the diversity, productive capacity, and resilience of nature, which are essential for long‐term human welfare. The knowledge needed to inform stewardship requires an interdisciplinary science that draws on the observations, skills, and creativity of a wide range of natural and social scientists, practitioners, and civil society. New questions and solutions will emerge when these groups work together to formulate the issues, design the research, and co‐produce the observations, knowledge, and concepts that form the basis for solutions. The goal of Earth Stewardship is not to protect nature from people; rather it is to protect nature for human welfare.

The main effects and interactions between light (Io, full incident sunlight to 0.07 Io) and NO3− loading (0.4 to 4.3 mmol · g dry weight−1· d−1) on growth rate, photosynthesis and biochemical constituents of Gracilaria tikvahiae McLachlan were studied using a factorial design experiment in outdoor, continuous‐flow seawater cultures. Incipient nitrogen limitation in the low NO3− loading, Io and 0.57 Io treatments occurred after 2.5 weeks of growth under the experimental conditions and resulted in decreased tissue NO3− and R‐phycoerythrin. Tissue NO3− and R‐phycoerythrin accounted for up to ca. 15 and 20%, respectively, of the total N in G. tikvahiae suggesting a N reserve role for these N pools. Under light and NO3− limitation, growth rate was a parabolic function of the C:N ratio. As light limitation increased, growth rate and the C:N ratio decreased as levels of Chl‐a, R‐phycoerythrin, percent N and percent protein increased. As NO3− limitation increased, growth rate and levels of Chl‐a, R‐phycoerythrin, percent N and percent protein all decreased with parallel increases in the C:N ratio. In contrast to the inverse relationship between pigment content and light, ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase (RuBPCase) activity (on both a protein and dry weight basis) varied directly with light. This biochemical acclimation of G. tikvahiae to light and N availability appears to be a process directed towards maximizing photo synthetic capacity and growth.