Synthesis sought for environment studies

WASHINGTON, DC—Perceiving a need for a new set of priorities for environmental research and education, the National Science Foundation (NSF) this week released a new report titled, "Complex Environmental Systems: Synthesis for Earth, Life, and Society in the 21st Century." The report, presented at a public briefing January 8, calls for increased interdisciplinary research linking the work of ecologists, environmentalists, computer scientists, social scientists and others. Composed by the NSF Advisory Committee for Environmental Research and Education, the report lays out a 10-year plan to expand NSF programs in the social sciences, cyber-infrastructure, observing systems, and education. Much of the report's emphasis is on "synthesis" research. Committee member James Kay, professor in the department of environment and resource studies at the University of Waterloo in Canada, offered the example of a river system: Investigating the health of a river requires knowledge of aquatic biology and stream dynamics, which relates to how the people use the land, which in turn relates to social and economic issues. Engineering issues are added to the mix in the case, for example, of the construction of a river dam. Another example of "synthesis": studying land use and suburban sprawl via synergetic studies of biology, environment, and economics. Right now, said incoming committee chair David Skole, "we don't have tools to make informed decisions." NSF director Rita Colwell praised the report, noting that its tenets will have an impact on increasingly critical area of emerging and reemerging infectious diseases. She took as an example the link between changes in oceans and cholera epidemics, a topic close to her own research. Colwell suggested that improved cyber-infrastructure, modeling, monitoring, and simulation capabilities might enable a better understanding of this dynamic via continuous, extended, large-scale ocean studies. She also emphasized the potential implications for national security, saying that NSF would like to provide "sensing structures for environmental health and for national security." Large-scale, complex environmental studies will require technological advancement. Committee member James Allen, a computer science professor at the University of Rochester, noted that something like a large-scale ocean study would require many cheap, disposable, small sensors that are able to communicate with one another—an imposing networking challenge that requires sorting out loads of redundant information. Data storage and access are also at issue, since formats change every few years. Though such difficulties are not at all unique to environmental research, their solutions, said Allen, may end up being motivated by the drive to complete imposing environmental research projects. Though the committee did not attempt to outline specific costs for the program's initiatives, according to past committee chair Stephanie Pfirman, the committee did agree that costs will be comparable to those laid out in a 2001 environmental science National Research Council report—about $1-2 billion over 10 years. Pfirman said that biocomplexity research at NSF has already been adjusted based on the "Complex Environmental Systems" report's priority-setting. Though NSF's Fiscal Year '04 budget increase remains uncertain, briefing participants argued that the initiatives called for in the plan should be considered a high priority. Margaret Leinen, coordinator for environmental research and education at the NSF, pointed out that over the last four years the NSF has increased funding of environmental research and education at a faster rate than for the NSF as a whole. Skole argued that at the core of the program is "sound science for environmental decision-making," a practical aim that policymakers should find attractive. The challenge now, said Skole, is implementation, deciding on scope, approach, and priority-setting for specific projects. He plans several small reports based on future committee deliberations.

Synthesis sought for environment studies

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