The 3 Sigma Institute and Northland College are pleased to announce several new short courses as part of the new Forest Lodge Summer Academy.
Courses: * Systems Dynamics Modeling for Complex Environmental Problems * Functional Assessment of Wetland Food Web Support: Patterns in Primary and Secondary Production * Lake Ecosystem Ecology: Biological and Hydrologic Sustainability of Lake Ecosystems The Site: The USFS Forest Lodge Historic District is located on Lake Namakagon within the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest near Cable, Wisconsin. It is about a 1.5 hour drive from the Duluth, Minnesota airport. Forest Lodge boasts lake access and several private islands. There are 15 buildings on the estate. The current USFS plan is to use the estate for research and educational purposes. Eventually, Forest Lodge will be able to accommodate 25-30 students for multi-day classes, workshops, and research projects. However, the estate buildings will not be available for use until 2015. Therefore, this summer we plan to accommodate students at the nearby Lakewoods Resort (see the web site for details) while they work within the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. For more information see: http://www.3sigmainstitute.org/projects/FL-summer-academy/ Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/3sigmainstitute Description of 2014 Summer Academy Courses Systems Dynamics Modeling for Complex Environmental Problems Instructor: Elizabeth Allen, Ph.D. Candidate, Washington State University Course # NRS 250 F1 | July 21-25, 2014 | Max 15 students Students will learn about the important role models play in understanding the environment and making policy decisions. They will get hands-on experience building system dynamics models of integrated systems and will explore how collaborative modeling might be used to support a decision-making process among stakeholders with diverse interests. Part I: Functional Assessment of Wetland Food Web Support: Patterns in Primary and Secondary Production Instructor: R. J. Garono, Ph.D.; University of Minnesota Course # NRS 350 F1 | August 6-10, 2014 | Max 20 students In this course, students will sample Lake Superior and inland lake emergent/submergent plant communities and the insect assemblages that those communities support. Students will compare multiple survey and collection techniques, construct and analyze data sets, and calculate and compare diversity indices. Students will compare community classification techniques to determine if wetland plant communities support characteristic invertebrate assemblages. Lake Ecosystem Ecology: Biological and Hydrologic Sustainability of Lake Ecosystems Instructor: R. Kiesling, Ph.D., USGS; R. J. Garono, Ph.D., University of Minnesota Course #: NRS 250 F2 | August 11-15, 2014 | Max 12 students The course will introduce students to the study of lakes as sentinel systems capable of tracking these types of environmental change along natural and human-produced gradients. Students will participate in the field collection and analysis of data from coastal Lake Superior, Lake Namekagon and other Chequamegon and Nicolet National Forest lakes as they help establish and maintain a regional network of sentinel lakes of climate change. Ralph J. Garono, Ph.D. [email protected] [email protected]
