Student Information

Interested in studying landscape ecology? 

1. Landscape functions and people course programme October 2007, Bangkok
2. Training course Ecological-economic Modelling
3. PhD scholarship: Defining social tresholds for living in tropical landscapes, Atherton, Australia
4. Postdoctoral Associate and Graduate Students, USA
5. Graduate Research Positions, Newfoundland, Canada
6. Fellowships environmental management
7. Find here in an overview of studies in  landscape ecology in Europe: landscape ecology in Europe.pdf
8. Landscape ecology in the USA: http://www.cof.orst.edu/org/usiale/rellinks.htm

Postdoctoral Associate and Graduate Students, USA

A postdoctoral associate and two graduate students are sought to join an interdisciplinary team that integrates ecology and economics for studying forested landscapes.

This integrated project takes a systems approach to examine ecological and economic effects of forest management on both public and private lands in a large region of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The region is currently managed primarily for timber harvest and deer hunting, with protection of non-game wildlife and promotion of tourism as additional goals. Our objectives are to (1) develop and validate a systems ecological-economic model, (2) conduct simulation experiments and test hypotheses using the model, and (3) use research products for education and extension. The comprehensive model will incorporate a variety of information (e.g., plants, wildlife, especially migratory songbirds, market and non-market values, and management activities) to address many fundamental questions that have important implications for management. The completion of this project will provide critical multi-scale information on ecological and economic responses across managed landscapes, economic trade-offs among various forest products and ecosystem services, and ways to optimize the choice and spatial arrangement of management options on the landscapes to improve and sustain natural resources and ecosystem services. Team members will have opportunities to be involved in outreach activities in which we share information with area stakeholders, and use this information to maximize the applicability of the model.

We are looking for highly motivated individuals to achieve the project objectives and to experience unique interdisciplinary opportunities.
Applicants should have strong interests in systems modeling, landscape ecology, forest ecology, wildlife ecology, or resource economics. Strong quantitative skills (e.g., computer modeling, mathematics, geographic information systems, remote sensing, and/or statistics) and programming experiences (e.g., C, C++, or Java) are desirable. Salaries and benefits are competitive. The starting date is negotiable.

Interested individuals should provide the following materials as soon as possible: (1) cover letter indicating general and specific research interests/experiences, (2) statement of professional goals (e.g., plans after finishing the training), (3) resume, (4) transcripts, (5) list of three references (names, email addresses, phone numbers, and postal addresses), (6) GRE scores, and (7) TOEFL scores (for international applicants whose native language is not English). Photocopies of transcripts and GRE/TOEFL scores are okay initially. Reviews of applications will continue until the positions are filled.

For additional information about the project, please contact Dr. Jianguo (Jack) Liu (systems modeling/landscape ecology, jliu@panda.msu.edu), Dr. Frank Lupi (resource economics, lupi@msu.edu), Dr. Mike Walters (forest ecology, mwalters@msu.edu), or Dr. Kim Hall (wildlife ecology, hallkim@msu.edu). In addition to these principal investigators, a number of collaborators from several resource management agencies (e.g., USGS, The Nature Conservancy, and Michigan Department of Natural Resources) are also part of the team.

Please email, mail, or fax all application materials to:

Sherrie Lenneman
Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability Department of Fisheries and Wildlife
13 Natural Resources Building
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
517-432-1699 (fax)
lenneman@msu.edu  (email)

Graduate Research Positions – Department of Biology, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Two 2-year M.Sc. positions in landscape ecology/conservation biology are available in Dr. Yolanda Wiersma’s laboratory. Additional positions may be available contingent on funding. These positions are available starting as early as Fall 2006, although a later start date is possible. Positions include a stipend of $6,500/year (contingent on meeting academic requirements and admissions criteria) together with opportunities for Graduate Assistantships as outlined in the university’s graduate studies program (see: http://www.mun.ca/sgs/home/  for more information about graduate studies at MUN). Under the guidance of the advisor and appropriate faculty members and collaborators, students will be expected to develop their own research project within one of the two broad topic areas described below.

Interested students are encouraged to contact Dr. Wiersma with a CV and brief statement of interests (contact information below).

Protected Areas Research

This is an ongoing area of research (principal investigator: Dr. Yolanda Wiersma), which has been funded most recently by the Canadian Council on Ecological Areas, and which has focused primarily on using Geographic Information Systems (GIS)-based models and reserve selection algorithms to identify minimum requirements for representative protected areas for mammals in Canada (see some of my recent publications for more information). Future research directions include more site-specific research on the identification of sites for protected areas in the Mackenzie Valley of the Northwest Territories and/or in other parts of Newfoundland and Labrador, or other parts of Canada. Such projects could incorporate other GIS data layers to further refine the current work. Other outstanding research questions include testing hypotheses about how scale and diversity patterns play a role in identifying minimum numbers of representative protected areas, and investigating what kind of target unit (e.g., ecoregion, ecozone, ecodistrict), if any, is appropriate for regional reserve planning. As well, I am developing a proposal to integrate land use change modelling and protected areas modelling to develop guidelines for protected areas planning in more intact landscapes, as well as a proposal to examine whether ecoregional classifications are the most appropriate framework for representative protected areas planning. Other projects germane to the issue of protected areas generally can be considered. Students interested in projects related to this topic or any of the research directions listed above should have a solid background in GIS, together with some background in ecology and/or conservation biology.

I have maintained a long-standing interested in research related to protected areas, and would also welcome students who have a project in mind related to landscape ecology and/or conservation biology within a specific protected area.


Caribou Research Project

This is a large, multi-year project being conducted by the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Wildlife Division. The larger project involves radio collaring 200 individual animals around the island of Newfoundland in order to obtain reliable population estimates. The herds have recently undergone a decline, and student projects might be designed to test hypothesized causes for the observed decline. These causes might include predator-prey interactions, shifts in habitat use in response to natural and/or anthropogenic landscape change, and nutritional stress. The Wildlife Division maintains a state-of-the-art wildlife laboratory in Cornerbrook, which is available for student use. Analysis of habitat use and changes in range use would involve the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), which could be conducted in the new LESA lab on the St. John’s campus. Studies involving nutritional assessment can be carried out in the Cornerbrook lab. Students interested in this project should ideally have a background in one or more of the following topic areas: ecology, wildlife management, GIS, modelling, animal nutrition, and spatial analysis.

Contact Information

Dr. Yolanda Wiersma
Assistant Professor
Department of Biology
Memorial University
St. John’s, NL
A1B 3X9
Phone: (General Office) (709)737-7498
Fax: (General Office) (709)737-3018
Email: ywiersma@uoguelph.ca