Scott Jackson, Extension Professor, part of team that received a seed grant from the Institute of Diversity Sciences

by Kelly Capponcelli Comment Closed
July 20, 2023 UMass Amherst’s Institute of Diversity Sciences (IDS) recently announced that it has awarded five grants to multidisciplinary teams of researchers in its annual seed grant competition. The winning teams focus on health equity, environmental justice, the political implications of the “majority minority” narrative, learning equity and the impact of transportation inequities on Black maternal health. The goal of these grants is to support STEM research that addresses social problems with an equity angle. Awardees received a total of $82,032. Most 2023 grants averaged $15,000, while one grant, awarded to a partnership between IDS and the Elaine Marieb Center for Nursing and Engineering Innovation, was for $25,000. Researchers supported by these grants came from 14 departments at UMass Amherst. Director of IDS, Nilanjana Dasgupta, director of the Institute of Diversity Sciences and Provost Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences says, “we are delighted to fund such wide-ranging research projects. Each project brings together faculty and students from two or more departments and colleges across UMass. We...
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2022-23 Environmental Conservation Awards and Scholarships Announced

2022-23 Environmental Conservation Awards and Scholarships Announced

by Kelly Capponcelli Comment Closed
We congratulate our students for all of their hard work this year! These students represent the three different programs offered within Environmental Conservation: Natural Resources Conservation, Environmental Sciences, Building and Construction Technology. We're fortunate to have a chance to shine a light on outstanding student achievements and provide student scholarship. Below is the complete list of award and scholarship winners. We are immensely proud of you all! Forest Ecology & Conservation: Outstanding Senior Award Maeve Noone-Price and Ethan Aubuchon Fisheries Ecology & Conservation: Outstanding Senior Award Jillian Taylor and Marin Allen Wildlife Ecology & Conservation: Outstanding Senior Award Amelia Anslow Water Resources: Outstanding Senior Award Callista Macpherson Arboriculture & Urban Forestry: Outstanding Senior Award Morgan Parent Environmental Conservation: Outstanding Senior Award Brahm Van Antwerp and Taylor Lo Environmental Science: Outstanding Senior in Natural Systems Brahm Van Antwerp and Ruichen Wang Environmental Science: Outstanding Senior in Society & Environment Zoe Murphy and Caitlyn Egan Environmental Science: Outstanding Senior in Environmental Quality Owen Porterfield Environmental Science: Outstanding Senior Transfer Student Hanwen Chen and Zachary Shein Environmental Science: Leadership & Engagement Award Cameron Chin, Julia...
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New Research Links Changes in Land Use to Water Quality and Quantity

New Research Links Changes in Land Use to Water Quality and Quantity

by Kelly Capponcelli Comment Closed
Future scenarios for eastern Massachusetts include 69% increase in runoff May 12, 2023 Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently published a study in the journal PLOS Water that focuses on the Sudbury-Assabet and Concord watershed in eastern Massachusetts, and which links hydrological changes, including floods, drought and runoff, to changing patterns of land use. “We all live in a watershed” says Timothy Randhir, professor of environmental conservation at UMass Amherst and the paper’s senior author. “We’re constantly modifying our landscape, turning what were once forests into roads, parking lots and backyards. We’re changing the landscape from one that was once hydrologically resilient to one that pushes water downstream.” But it can be hard to see the complex links between changes in land use and changes in the hydrological cycle. For instance, much of Massachusetts is now subject to the paradoxical situation in which summer drought follows spring flooding. Surely if there’s enough extra water to flood the streets in towns throughout the state then shouldn’t there...
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UMass iCons: Women in Power

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 The iCons program takes a unique approach to STEM education, preparing leaders and innovators for tthe sustainable energy field The Integrated Concentration in STEM (iCons) Program uproots expectations about what undergraduate students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and business are capable of achieving.  iCons brings the real world into the classroom with two goals in mind: preparing undergraduates for success after graduation and equipping them to change the world for the better. To do this, iCons asks students to tackle problems that have defied solution by even the world's foremost experts. "To most students, pinning one's grade on solving a grand challenge would be terrifying," points out Scott Auerbach, chemistry professor and Mahoney Family sponsored executive director of the iCons program. iCons' methodology is designed to convert this learning environment from terrifying to fun through a unique blend of team-based learning, student-driven learning, and reflective learning.  In their solution-focused model, iCons encourages students to explore (with a moral compass) societal needs for practical applications of new technologies...
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CNS Graduate Students Travel to Washington to Advocate for Science

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  Sarah Deckel and Katrina Zarrella Smith communicate research to policy makers Graduate students Raymond Caraher, Sarah Deckel, Timothy Nsubuga and Katrina Zarrella Smith attended the Catalyzing Advocacy in Science and Engineering (CASE) workshop March 26-29 in Washington D.C. Hosted by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), this workshop introduced students to the federal policy-making process and strategies to effectively communicate research to policy makers. On the final day, participants from UMass Amherst and Boston University tested their skills in meetings with congressional staff from the offices of Sens. Ed Markey, Susan Collins and Elizabeth Warren, and staff from the offices of Reps. Jake Auchincloss and Jim McGovern. For Nsubuga, civil and environmental engineering, the CASE workshop deepened his thinking about the intersection of environmental and water resources engineering and policy. “My biggest takeaway is that science does not lead to one clear policy but that opinions based on science can help create a set of viable policies,” he says, adding that the...
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