This Integrative Graduate Education and Research Training (IGERT) award supports the establishment of a multidisciplinary doctoral training program of education and research on ecology, management and restoration of integrated human/natural landscapes. The vision for this training program is to shift the emphasis of graduate education in conservation from its traditional focus on protecting pristine habitats to a focus on improving the integration of human activities with those of native species and communities. A newly developed interdisciplinary curriculum will include instruction in ecology, remediation and restoration, planning and policy, and environmental economics and will conclude with a team-based capstone project. Students will also work directly with practicing environmental professionals through summer internships with participating area partners that include the Chicago Botanic Garden, USDA Forest Service, The Field Museum, Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie and the Army Corp of Engineers. Students will be co-mentored by a partner environmental practitioner and a University of Illinois at Chicago faculty member, and develop a real-world research project in conjunction with the partner institution. This training program will produce trainees who are better prepared for leadership positions in environmental and conservation careers. The setting of the program at an urban university located in Chicago is an important component, as this region provides a rich setting for research, strong and diverse partnerships with area institutions, and outstanding potential for participation by students from diverse backgrounds. IGERT is an NSF-wide program intended to meet the challenges of educating U.S. Ph.D. scientists and engineers with the interdisciplinary background, deep knowledge in a chosen discipline, and the technical, professional, and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future. The program is intended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education by establishing innovative new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries.
LEAP (Landscape, Ecological and Anthropogenic Processes), an NSF IGERT program, provided an interdisciplinary doctoral program designed to advance our knowledge of ecological processes occurring in highly-modified urban systems. Students and faculty from seven departments spanning four colleges at the University of Illinois at Chicago participated in LEAP. In addition, partnerships with several non-academic institutions, including Chicago Wilderness, Chicago Botanic Gardens, Army Corp of Engineers, and USDA Forest Service provided internships and research collaborations for LEAP participants. Twenty-six graduate students were supported by LEAP fellowships and received broad training that incorporated policy, planning, and the social sciences together with the ecology of urban systems. A majority of LEAP fellows were women, and fellows included underrepresented minority women. All fellows took part in a four course curriculum that concluded with a capstone project. During the capstone projects, students conducted research and analysis collaboratively with their cohort which included students from different disciplines. Research projects focused on spatial and socioeconomic distributions of biodiversity and ecosystem services in urban regions. Several projects undertaken by LEAP fellows studied the dynamics of species invasions in the Chicago region. Other projects investigated green infrastructure and biodiversity across socioeconomic gradients in Chicago. All LEAP fellows, regardless of discipline or department, participated in research which evaluated some aspect of society and/or human behavior in relationship to urban ecosystems. External evaluation of the LEAP program demonstrated that it established a more supportive and collaborative environment than is typical in graduate programs. Social network analysis demonstrated that students and faculty in LEAP had significantly more linkages across departments and colleges than non-LEAP students, and LEAP students participated in more cross-disciplinary research and collaborations.
