Print PageScott Peters, an historian of the land-grant university system, presents three contrasting narratives used to describe university outreach: the “heroic meta-narrative” in which scientists solve technical problems; the “tragic counter-narrative” in which scientists provide technocratic solutions that lead to environmental and social decline; and the “prophetic counter-narrative” in which scientists engage with communities to collaboratively seek strategies that enhance well-being. This last narrative is most consistent with the Civic Ecology Lab, which has emerged from our recognition that community-based environmental restoration and stewardship have important implications for environmental education, environmental quality, social capital, and social-ecological system resilience in cities and elsewhere. Because such civic ecology practices, including community gardening, community forestry, and watershed restoration, emerge from the efforts of local leaders, the role of the university scientist is less one of dissemination of research-based knowledge, and more that of seeking to understand and explain (e.g., through participatory research), and of leveraging (e.g., for science education, community resilience) these practices.
The question addressed in this presentation is: how can university scientists work as and with civic ecology practitioners to foster research, education, and social-ecological system resilience?
Results/Conclusions
One current participatory research effort focuses on understanding the role of urban community forestry initiatives that emerged in New Orleans post-Katrina, and have been described by tree planters as important to memorializing that which was lost, kindling a sense of solidarity in the difficult task of rebuilding, restoring and enhancing a sense of community in declining neighborhoods, renewing a sense of place in a city where live oaks are integral to place identity, and restoring ecosystem services. The role of the researcher has been both to support ongoing community NGOs and reforestation efforts (e.g., through producing and contributing proceeds of a documentary book), as well as to gather data for publication, theory development, and application (e.g., distilling best management practices for municipalities to benefit from greening activities post-disaster). Garden Mosaics is a civic ecology education program that encourages young people to learn from local community gardeners and from science resources produced at Cornell, and to engage in ongoing civic ecology practice (community gardening). Through providing opportunities for such engagement, our role has been to leverage existing civic ecology practice and in so doing support the expansion of feedback loops that foster social connectivity and changes in ecosystem structure, leading to provision of ecosystem services. Such feedbacks have the potential to contribute to social-ecological system resilience.
