The Mount Mansfield Science and Stewardship Center

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1 The Mount Mansfield Science and Stewardship Center Strategic Plan Our Mission To catalyze collaborative science and stewardship for healthy mountains, watersheds, and communities Founding Partners University of Vermont Vermont Center for Ecostudies Vermont Monitoring Cooperative Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation Stowe Mountain Resort Kent McFarland This strategic plan summarizes information contained in program, facilities, and business plans developed with support from the National Science Foundation Division of Biological Infrastructure, the UVM Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, the Vermont Monitoring Cooperative, the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, The Vermont Ski Areas Association, and the UVM Offices of the Provost and Vice President for Research.

2 Our Vision Mansfield Center partners envision: A community of scholars, educators, and natural resource managers engaged in transformational science and stewardship from a state-of-the-art facility in the heart of the Green Mountains A dynamic hub of inquiry and education, where the Center s cooperators and visitors interact and learn from one another in a living laboratory A home for programs that foster a deeper understanding of high-elevation ecology and sustain the vitality of ecosystems on Mount Mansfield and throughout the bioregion Our Guiding Principles Our programs and practices are guided by the following principles. Integration of research, education, and stewardship is needed to sustain ecosystems and their services to society. Strategic collaboration increases the impact of science and conservation by aligning resources, skills, and knowledge. Standardized, long-term monitoring and short-term experimentation play essential and complementary roles in science and stewardship. Together, they provide a vital record of the past, reveal ecological patterns and processes, and form a basis for projecting future conditions under different scenarios. Science, stewardship and education must adapt as conditions change and techniques improve. Ecological and economic sustainability are fundamental to implementing responsible science, stewardship, and education programs. Cooperative and proficient information management creates valuable opportunities for researchers, educators, and natural resource managers. Place-based science, stewardship, and education offer unique advantages over other approaches to building and applying knowledge. Our Goals To build knowledge of mountain ecosystems and changes affecting mountain flora and fauna To advance understanding of relationships among mountains, streams, and lakes. To provide place-based education and outreach on mountain ecology, conservation issues, and stewardship To develop, implement, and demonstrate management actions that lead to improved conservation of mountain environments To provide a platform for scholarship and instruction in fields that address social dimensions of mountain environments, such as engineering, human health, economics, education, and the humanities To foster connections among UVM schools and programs and between the University and the Vermont State College system 1

3 Science and Stewardship Measure natural variability and effects of human activity on mountain ecosystems with observations and experiments conducted across a range of elevations Quantify and model processes that sustain ecosystem function and deliver ecosystem services Evaluate the capacity of plant and animal populations and natural communities to resist, recover from, and adapt to anthropogenic stressors Integrate scientific findings into management decisions, tools, and guidelines that support the health, resilience, and stable transformation of mountain ecosystems Apply, assess, and communicate these measures on Mount Mansfield An active program of coordinated, multi-disciplinary research projects that address effects of climate change and other human-induced stressors on the health of mountain ecosystems Research policies and procedures that ensure compatibility among research activities and minimize impacts on natural features and visitor experiences Uptake of research findings into environmental policy and natural resource management A Northeast Mountain Science Conference that explores frontiers of knowledge and generates regionally coordinated research projects linking natural, physical, and social sciences 2

4 Education Provide learning experiences that prepare students to be leaders in environmental science, stewardship, and related fields Foster dedication to healthy ecological and social systems through immersion in cooperative field studies Build technical skills and knowledge by enabling students to participate directly in multiple phases of science and stewardship projects Offer informal science and stewardship education to people visiting the Mansfield Center and the Smuggler s Notch Visitors Center Deliver outreach programs to area residents An annual calendar of education, outreach, training, and service-learning programs, including UVM field courses and labs An undergraduate research internship program Guided and self-guided science and stewardship tours that highlight research, management, and restoration projects A proposal to establish a UVM certificate program in Mountain Studies Charles Gangas 3

5 Data Management Incorporate data storage, transfer and management costs into research project proposals Utilize and support cyberinfrastructure currently maintained by the Vermont Monitoring Cooperative Provide a secure repository for data and metadata with access constraints and backup policies Provide searchable, linked information for Mansfield Center research projects, including a document archive, data display and visualization capability, and metadata summaries Add data collected through sensor networks to the data repository on an ongoing basis and subject them to quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) procedures A channel of funding for data management established through research project proposals QA/QC protocols for information gathered by sensor arrays Semi-annual training sessions for Mansfield Center cooperators, visitors, and program participants with orientation to data resources and protocols An updated data management plan to reflect current user needs and system requirements 4

6 Facilities and Infrastructure Lease and renovate the Mount Mansfield Summit Station to create a state-of-the-art, LEED-certified mountain field station Offer multipurpose research and educational infrastructure to support short- and long-term field studies Enhance the mountain s existing system of field instruments and sensors Emphasize safety and security in managing the facility and its programs Orient first-time users to protocols for use of the station and its environs Secure, catalogue, service, and inventory lab and field equipment at regular intervals Architectural and exhibit designs that reflect the Mansfield Center s goals and meet the needs of prospective users A regularly updated inventory of field instruments deployed on the mountain A high-elevation platform for integrated science and stewardship that offers shelter, lodging, wet and dry labs, and equipment storage A visitor registration and orientation system, including building use guidelines, personal and environmental safety procedures, and infrastructure security protocols Interactive exhibits and instructional resources that support formal and informal education of students, professionals, and the visiting public A distributed, wireless network of environmental sensors that deliver real-time information to a secure data hub and mountain dashboard housed at the field station 5

7 Finance and Administration Initiate capital and endowment campaigns to help meet infrastructure and long-term operational funding requirements Hire experienced and motivated staff Recruit individuals from partnering communities and institutions to serve on an advisory board and on program, facilities, and finance committees Produce and implement annual action plans for staff and committees to provide the administrative and financial resources needed to support program goals in Science and Stewardship, Education, Data Management, and Facilities and Infrastructure Provide fee-based services that enable high-elevation research, monitoring, education, and conservation Initiate and support collaborative science and stewardship projects that generate revenue from user fees and grants Maintain steady growth in programs, services, and usage rates to become a leader in the emerging, international network of mountain observatories Offer customizable scheduling and fee packages Include infrastructure costs explicitly in all grants and contracts Maintain and regularly update an informative and appealing website Sufficient capital and operational resources to accomplish the mission, supplied by a diversified funding package A field station staff comprised of a faculty director, assistant director, database manager, seasonal caretaker, and contract educators A broadly representative board of advisors with a well-defined charge and authority Actively engaged program, finance, and facilities committees A marketing campaign to promote Mansfield Center services and programs A facility/program evaluation system to collect and incorporate user feedback into updates of policies, systems, and programs 6

8 Timeline for Outcomes and Activities Program Science and Stewardship Research Policies and Procedures Coordinated Research Projects Uptake of Findings into Policy & Mgt. NE Mountain Science Conf. Education Develop Calendar of Education Programs Deliver Ed. Programs Undergraduate Internship Science and Stewardship Tours Certificate Program Proposal Data Management QA/QC Protocols for Sensed Data Data Mgt. Funding/Training Update of Data Management Plan Facilities and Infrastructure Architectural and Exhibit Designs Inventory of Field Instruments Registration and Orientation System Operating Field Station Enhanced Sensor Network Finance and Administration Diversified Funding Package Staff (growing until 2020) Board of Advisors Program, Finance & Facilities Committees Marketing Campaign Facility and Program Evaluation 7

9 Measuring Performance and Impact Mansfield Center staff and committee members will use the following metrics to evaluate the program performance and impact at intervals of one to five years. Program Science and Stewardship Education Data Management Facilities and Infrastructure Administration and Finance Metric Number of publications and their citation impact factors Number of laws, regulations, and policies influenced Participation in collaborative networks Number of students conducting independent research Learning-outcomes assessments Number of organizations that visit the field station Number of content-rich media impressions Number of contact hours Number of digital datasets archived, downloaded, and cited Number of user days supported Number and size of grants enabled by the field station Operating and maintenance expenses Level of Support from the National Science Foundation 8