We are pleased to introduce the interdisciplinary group of problem solvers participating in this year’s Field Stations research program. These professionals will contribute insights from environmental science, ecology, agriculture, conservation, engineering, policy, education, community engagement, design, and other fields to envision new solutions for a complex ecological concern.
Field Stations 2024: Nexus of Land and Water will address the problem of dust deposition on snow in the Southwest. Dust-on-Snow is a natural phenomenon that occurs when dust particles land on snow, darkening its surface and causing it to melt faster. The issue has become a major concern as the 24-year-long southwestern North American megadrought has created a feedback loop, increasing dust emissions and exacerbating the impacts of drought and water scarcity for downstream communities.
Problem solvers will develop applied research projects that address dust mobilization and align with the needs and values of the affected communities. Their proposals and findings will be presented at a symposium in Colorado in the fall.
While this project is centered around a specific geographic area, the issue of dust-on-snow is of global relevance. WII has partnered with the Mountain Studies Institute and their longstanding collaborators from the Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies, New Mexico State University, the United States Department of Agriculture, Soil Health Services, and the Center for Earth Theology. These organizations have separately and collectively engaged in addressing the issue of dust-on-snow in the region for many years. Nexus of Land and Water builds on these groups’ ongoing collaborations and broadens the conversation through WII’s signature interdisciplinary and systems-focused approaches. At the Wright-Ingraham Institute, we are pioneering models of integrated research and learning that can best address complex dilemmas at the interfaces between natural and cultural systems.
Meet Our Interdisciplinary Problem Solvers
- Bill Brinton, Supervisor of the Mosca-Hooper Conservation District, Alamosa County, CO.
- Larry Brown, San Luis Valley Area Director & Agriculture Agent at CSU Extension.
- Lauren Czaplicki, Founder of Science by Design LLC DBA Fungal Solutions, with a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering.
- Seth Denizen, Human Geographer and Landscape Architect. Assistant Professor at Washington University in St. Louis.
- Saroj Dhital, Atmospheric Science Researcher and Postdoctoral Associate at the Jornada Experimental Range, NMSU.
- Sunny Dooley, Diné Hozhojii Hané (Diné Blessing Way Story) Storyteller, Poet, and Organizer of positive possibilities for true change. Creative Director/Producer of Wisdom Carriers.
- Mike Duniway, Research Ecologist with the US Geological Survey in Moab, UT.
- Beth Lamberson, professional in Non-profit, Grant Writing and Public Radio Management.
- Angie Mestas, Teacher from 6 generations of Farmers and Ranchers with a background in Agricultural Biology and Art.
- Travis Nauman, Research Soil Scientist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.
- Len Necefer, Founder of NativesOutdoors, with a Ph.D. in Engineering & Public Policy.
- S. McKenzie Skiles, Snow Hydrologist, Associate Professor, and Director of the Snow Hydro Lab, at the University of Utah.
- Leslie Sobel, Multi-Media Artist addressing water and climate change.
- Linnea Spears-Lebrun, senior Restoration Ecologist and Project Manager.
- Madeline Wilson, Agricultural Production Systems Specialist for CSU Extension.
- Kristina Young, Research Ecologist (postdoctoral scholar) USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range, with a Ph.D. in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology.
Selected through a competitive open call for participants, this group of Interdisciplinary Problem Solvers will join the project’s Core Team who have been working with the Institute over the past two years to formulate and structure and define the project’s approach, methodologies, and goals.
Meet Our Core Team:
- Jeff Derry, Director of the Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies in Silverton, Colorado, and Director of the Colorado Dust-on-Snow program (“CODOS”).
- Kevin Lombard, Associate Professor and Superintendent at New Mexico State University Agricultural Science Center at Farmington.
- Patrick O’Neill, Agronomist and Soil Scientist at Soil Health Services, San Luis Valley, Colorado.
- Heidi Steltzer, Climate Scientist, Theologian, and Founder of the Center for Earth Theology in Cortez, Colorado.
- Nicholas Webb, Research Physical Scientist at the Jornada Experimental Range Research Unit at USDA Las Cruces.
The project is directed by Jake Kurzweil, Hydrologist, Associate Director of the Water Program at Mountain Studies Institute, and Frida Foberg, Field Stations Program Manager, Wright-Ingraham Institute.
We look forward to the solutions and collaborations that will emerge from this year’s Field Stations program. Follow us on social media and reach out to find out more about our work.
Field Stations 2024 is supported by a Design Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, and supporting grants from Colorado Water Conservation Board and the Southwestern Water Conservation District.
