Transdisciplinary sustainability training is a recognized need in many graduate programs. However, there is limited analysis of specific pedagogical tools to support this effort, particularly from the perspective of graduate students. Here, we reflect on the application of a "theory of change" process to support transdisciplinary thinking among early career researchers with diverse disciplinary backgrounds. For class participants, the theory of change process helped to clarify the diversity of actors associated with their research, to unpack their assumptions about complex problems, to clarify important causal linkages, and to support the development of a systems perspective. Challenges in using the theory of change in the classroom context included the difficulty of putting boundaries around student projects, and the additional time requirements involved in completing a detailed theory of change. The process helped class participants situate their specific and more disciplinary research projects in a broader sustainability context.
Declines in the spatial extent of the sagebrush ecosystem have prompted the consideration of conservation efforts that view the greater sage‐grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; sage‐grouse) as an umbrella species at landscape scales. Conservation strategies that focus on an umbrella species, however, may have unintended negative consequences for co‐occurring species at finer scales. In North America, grassland and shrubland songbird populations are declining faster than other avian groups. Conservation of sage‐grouse habitats may protect songbird habitats where distributions overlap. To assess the umbrella species concept at fine scales, we quantified nest‐site selection for a sagebrush‐obligate songbird, the Brewer's sparrow (Spizella breweri). We then compared the fine‐scale habitat variables that influenced Brewer's sparrow nest‐site selection with fine‐scale nest‐site selection for sage‐grouse in the Powder River Basin region of northeastern Wyoming, USA. We modeled nest‐site selection using conditional logistic regression for Brewer's sparrow (2016–2017) and logistic regression for sage‐grouse (2004–2007). Both species selected nest sites with higher visual obstruction, shrub height, and branching density, although the selection for higher shrub height was stronger for sage‐grouse. Brewer's sparrows selected nest shrubs with higher percentage of living foliage (vigor), and the opposite was shown for sage‐grouse. At the nest site, based on the variables we measured, our results suggest that Brewer's sparrows and sage‐grouse select for similar habitat attributes, with the exception of shrub vigor of the nest shrub. The stronger selection for more vigorous shrubs in Brewer's sparrows may be because they nest in shrubs, rather than on the ground under shrubs (as in sage‐grouse). Most of the conservation objectives for protection of sage‐grouse habitats appear to be beneficial or inconsequential for Brewer's sparrow. Local habitat management for sage‐grouse as a proxy for conservation of other species may be justified if the microhabitat preferences of the species under the umbrella are understood to avoid unintentional negative effects. © 2019 The Wildlife Society.
<p>Peatlands have long been recognized as providing a wide range of ecosystem services valuable to humans. In recent decades their role in the global climate and particularly their importance in long-term carbon sequestration has come into focus. Peatlands and peat basins are an important carbon store globally, and are estimated to cover nearly 25% of the Scottish landscape: they constitute a significant carbon stock, but being able to accurately estimate the volume of peat stored in coastal basins, both locally and regionally, remains a time-consuming process. Traditional methods of investigating peat depth and volume involved the measurement of peat to depth of contact with a mineral horizon, such as sand. This process is conducted with a peat depth probe or corer, with the spatial density of measurements varying significantly with basin size. Volumetric assessments based on such measurements therefore require interpolation between control points, leading to unquantifiable errors particularly if the base of peat has significant and unrecorded topography. Geophysical methods, in particular the 3D application of ground-penetrating (GPR), offer a promising solution to improve the accuracy in basin volumetrics.</p><p>In this paper, a 3D dataset of 100 MHz GPR data was acquired with a Mala Geosciences Rough Terrain system over a buried Holocene coastal environment near Arisaig, northwest Scotland. 3D surveying involves the acquisition of a suite of parallel GPR profiles, with a small profile separation to capture the full variability of subsurface structure. For this site, a profile was acquired every 0.5 m, over an area of 62 x 32 m.&#160; The site is also sampled by 39 boreholes, which record the base of peat between 1-3.2 m depth and indicate a peat volume of 3720 m<sup>3</sup>. By revealing the true topography of the base of the basin, the GPR data suggest that the borehole-derived volume is overestimated by almost 50%, and instead predict a basin volume of 2529 &#177; 200 m<sup>3</sup>. Of this, 2064 &#177; 200 m<sup>3 </sup>is classified as organic peat (81.6%) and the remaining 465 &#177; 200 m<sup>3 </sup>is marine clay (18.4%).&#160; The principal source of error in this estimate is in the constraint of the GPR velocity, required to convert the time-axis of the GPR dataset to depth. This was measured at 0.034 m/ns &#177; 8%.</p><p>The acquisition of 3D GPR data is nonetheless time-consuming and requires precise positional control to locate the GPR antennas and avoid misinterpretation. Nonetheless, sufficient topographic information is captured even if the acquisition had recorded only every 5<sup>th</sup> GPR profile: for this downsampled dataset, the estimated basin volume is 2490 m<sup>3 </sup>&#177; 200 m<sup>3</sup> (a difference of only 2.5% from the full 3D dataset). 3D survey methods, therefore, give confidence to a volumetric estimate, but the need for full-resolution 3D sampling can likely be relaxed. However, GPR surveys reveal subsurface variability that would be difficult to reconstruct from a sparse set of borehole observations. Nonetheless, some amount of borehole control is invaluable for validating the GPR data and providing ground-truth control of subsurface structure.</p>
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