The USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station and the University of Kansas are seeking three ORISE Fellows (postdocs and advanced graduate students) to assist with a recently funded project from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law titled: “Restoring with culturally significant plants to strengthen food webs for pollinators and Tribal community well-being.” Please feel free to share widely!
1. Landscape Assessment of Restoration Projects Fellowship
The participant will contribute to a project that will help reestablish and maintain relationships between Tribes and culturally significant plants, bees, and the entire ecosystem through knowledge-building and future restoration efforts that promote self-sustaining harvests. The project aims to improve understanding of how acres treated for restoration objectives affects the long-term sustainability, ecological integrity, and resilience of these landscapes, both increasing biodiversity and cultural resources. The goal of this postdoctoral opportunity is to be involved in a broad range of experiences and activities:
Develop a GIS landscape assessment that identifies the extent of existing non-forest and open canopy restoration efforts on Federal and Non-Federal lands.
Conduct a regional literature review of upland non-forested and open canopy restoration efforts, and assembling relevant datasets on vegetation surveys, pollinator surveys, and monitoring efforts.
Coordinate a meta-analysis that includes questions related to culturally-significant plants and pollinator communities.
Create restoration scenarios that prioritize lands to restore while estimating potential culturally significant plant and pollinator habitat resources.
Contribute to the translation of results through developing prioritization decision-support tools, presentations, and synthesis reports.
This position is located at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA
See https://www.zintellect.com/Opportunity/Details/USDA-FS-NRS-2024-0194 for more information on eligibility, stipend and learning objectives
2. Integrating Indigenous Knowledge in Restoration Fellowship
The participant will contribute to a project that aims to co-produce knowledge with Tribal, community, and other partners to help restore grasslands, savannas, and related open canopy systems to Midwestern US landscapes. Project goals include reestablishing and maintaining relationships between Tribes and culturally significant plants, bees, and the entire ecosystem through knowledge-building and future restoration efforts that promote self-sustaining harvests. Activities anticipated for the fellow include:
Assist with relationship-building and co-development of workshops with Tribes to identify restoration and research needs from Tribes and other landowners.
Coordinate information on how Indigenous Knowledge has guided past restoration efforts, how it can guide future efforts, and identify potential barriers for implementing future restoration projects.
Contribute to a database of restoration plants for non-forest and open canopy systems, and their pollinator, edible, medicinal and cultural value.
Participate in virtual and in-person collaborative meetings to evaluate whether and how restoration efforts on non-forest lands have benefited culturally important plants and supported pollinators.
Collaborate on developing presentations and reports.
This position is located at the University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
See https://www.zintellect.com/Opportunity/Details/USDA-FS-NRS-2024-0195 for more information on eligibility, stipend and learning objectives
3. Restoring Culturally Significant Plants for People and Pollinators Fellowship
The participant will contribute to a project that aims to co-produce knowledge with Tribal, community, and other partners to help restore grasslands, savannas, and related open canopy systems to Midwestern US landscapes. Project goals include reestablishing and maintaining relationships between Tribes and culturally significant plants, bees, and the entire ecosystem through knowledge-building and future restoration efforts that promote self-sustaining harvests. Activities anticipated for the fellow include:
Coordinating logistics, project planning, and data management for the project
Assist with building relationships and co-development of workshops with Tribes
Assisting with field research
Assisting with developing presentations and reports
This position is located at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA
See https://www.zintellect.com/Opportunity/Details/USDA-FS-NRS-2024-0196 for more information on eligibility, stipend and learning objectives.