The Great Lakes Northern Forest (GLNF) Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) is a regional network of faculty, specialists, managers, and staff from leading academic institutions, conservation organizations, and federal agencies. All units transcend political and institutional boundaries to improve the scientific base for managing public lands. They provide resource managers with high quality scientific research, technical assistance, and education. The GLNF CESU seeks to resolve resource problems at multiple scales using interdisciplinary ecosystem studies involving the biological, physical, social, and cultural sciences. The GLNF CESU has been hosted by the University of Minnesota’s Department of Forest Resources since 2002.
Differentiating phosphorus sources using phosphate oxygen isotopes to identify contributing watersheds
The National Park Service, South Florida Natural Resources Center (SFNRC), is requesting proposals for the study, "Differentiating phosphorus sources using phosphate oxygen isotopes to identify contributing watersheds.”
Disentangling the effects of rainfall and water management actions on the water levels and flows in the Everglades National Park
The National Park Service, South Florida Natural Resources Center (SFNRC), is requesting proposals for the study, "Disentangling the effects of rainfall and water management actions on the water levels and flows in the Everglades National Park.”
Determining drivers of floodplain forest regeneration success and failure on the Upper Mississippi River in Minnesota and Wisconsin
Proactive management actions can aid in reducing the chance of future forest loss, but there is limited research or institutional knowledge along the Upper Mississippi available on the mechanisms driving regeneration of key floodplain forest tree species and, therefore, management actions to promote regeneration of trees often result in failure.
The current study aims to identify key drivers of regeneration for a handful of currently widespread floodplain forest tree species and to test a set of management techniques to promote the establishment of regeneration from seed. This information is critical for developing management strategies to ensure long-term viability of Upper Mississippi River (UMR) Floodplain Forests.
Science Communication for Inflation Reduction Act Projects in Northeastern National Parks
The National Park Service is receiving $190M through the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act to support ecosystem resilience and restoration and climate change vulnerability assessments. The northeast region expects to receive a portion of this funding to initiate one to five projects this year and seeks LOIs for providing clear and informative periodic science communication products for each funded project. Products will include accurate briefing statements, web articles, timely press releases, and additional outreach products (such as social media posts and videos).
Deer Population Estimation for Northeastern National Parks
The northeast region of the National Park Service (NPS) seeks Letters of Research Interest (LOI) for evaluating current park-level efforts to estimate deer population size and developing a consistent regional approach for long-term deer monitoring.
Several parks in the northeast region are using road-based spotlight surveys or game cameras to collect data on deer populations, along with multiple approaches to analyze these data. Additional parks are prepared to begin collecting data as part of the broader forest resilience initiative. The parks need assistance determining appropriate monitoring methods and sampling designs, initial data analysis, and guidance on analyzing the data long-term.