Tag: Strong Coasts

May 6, 2021

VOTE FOR STRONG COASTS! 2021 STEM for All Video Showcase

Strong Coasts is participating in the 2021 STEM for All Video Showcase! Starting May 11 through the 18th, our NEW video will be live in the interactive #STEMvideohall where you can vote, ask questions for us, and comment.

 

Use this direct link to sign up for notification when the video is made live to the public, and to view our video once the showcase is live: http://videohall.com/p/2221!

You can also search for our title, “Interdisciplinary Community-Engaged Systems-Thinking Project”. 

SHARE WITH YOUR NETWORKS!

Use these materials to spread the word about voting for us!

 

FACEBOOK/INSTAGRAM IMAGE:

TWITTER IMAGE:

 

Here is some general information form the event organizers:

SAVE THE DATES!
The #STEMvideohall opens May 11-18! Come view 3-minute videos revealing the under-reported, positive side of STEM learning & teaching, interact w/ others in the field, and vote for your favorites! https://stemforall2021.videohall.com

Learn more at: STEM for All 2021 Video Showcase

 

GENERAL INFO VIDEO ON THE SHOWCASE EVENT:

 

GENERAL INFO FLYER:

Flyer_2021_STEM_for_All_Video_Showcase

September 16, 2020

STRONG COASTS WEBINAR: THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED – DATE TBD!

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED – DATE TBD!

The Great Carbohydrate Injection into the Biosphere: more calories, less nutrients, & unknown health risks

GUEST SPEAKER DR. IRAKLI LOLADZE will talk about his findings that rising atmospheric carbon dioxide levels (CO2) decrease the concentrations of minerals essential for human nutrition, including iron and zinc, in plants globally. After years of compiling data, in 2014 he published a meta-analysis revealing a pervasive and systemic downshift in mineral levels in plants worldwide. His research came to influence US policy and was highlighted by New Scientist, Nature, Science, and in a two-times award winning article in Politico.

DR. IRAKLI LOLADZE

Speaker website: https://sites.google.com/site/loladze/home

In the news: “The Great Nutrient Collapse”. The atmosphere is literally changing the food we eat, for the worse. And almost nobody is paying attention. By Helena Bottemiller Evich, 09/13/2017, Politico
https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/09/13/food-nutrients-carbon-dioxide-000511/

Bio: Irakli Loladze is a Mathematical Biologist. He obtained his MA and PhD degrees in mathematics at Arizona State University. He then worked as a postdoc at Princeton University, where in 2002 he postulated that rising atmospheric carbon dioxide levels (CO2) decrease the concentrations of minerals essential for human nutrition, including iron and zinc, in plants globally. After years of compiling data, in 2014 he published a meta-analysis revealing a pervasive and systemic downshift in mineral levels in plants worldwide. His research came to influence US policy and was highlighted by New Scientist, Nature, Science, and in a two-times award winning article in Politico. In 2019, Loladze and collaborators showed that rising CO2 levels result in lower levels of plant carotenoids critical for human eye and brain health.

November 11, 2019

Aquaculture and Aquaponics at the MOTE Aquaculture Research Park

by Estenia Ortiz Carabantes

Located in Sarasota, Florida lies a research and development facility dedicated to increasing domestic aquaculture production to feed local residents of Florida in a sustainable manner. This facility is called the MOTE Aquaculture Research Park (MAP) and is led by senior scientist, Dr. Kevan Main and her team of experts. On October 4th, 2019, several STRONG Coast fellows and special guest, Dr. Jesse Edwards from the Chemistry Department at FAMU, met with Dr. Kevan Main a to tour the Mote facility and learn about their work with integrated aquaculture systems and fisheries enhancement.

 
Left to Right: Dr. Jesse Edwards (FAMU Chemistry Professor), Kris-An Hinds, Michelle Platz, Dr. Kevan Main, Adaline Buerck, Estenia Ortiz Carabantes, Michelle Henderson, and Maya Carrasquillo.

MAP focuses on marine and freshwater land-based aquaculture systems that are used for fish stock enhancement and food production. These systems are maintained in a sustainable manner in that the water that is used for production is reused. These recirculating systems at MAP use mechanical and biological treatment methods such as biofilters to purify the water and ensure conditions are suitable for the fish.

 
Our very knowledgeable tour guide, Tom Waldrop (Senior Biologist), showing the biofilter media that is used for water treatment at the facility.

The biological filter media allows nitrifying bacteria to colonize and oxidize ammonium, a waste product from the fish that is also toxic to them. The nitrification process, and removal of harmful concentrations of ammonium, enables the water to be recirculated. As a result, there is little to zero water discharge from this facility making it a top leader in the U.S. on developing marine recirculating aquaculture methods.

Another use of these recirculating systems is to grow plants that can be used for consumption or ecosystem restoration. MAP combines technology in aquaculture and hydroponics to grow fish, sea vegetables, and certain wetland plants. Dr. Main has worked closely with Gil Sharell from Aquatic Plants of Florida to innovate efficient and sustainable freshwater and salt-water aquaponics systems for these purposes. While most aquaponic production has focused on freshwater species, MAP expands that scope to marine aquaponics.

 
Sea purslane growning in a marine aquaponics system at MAP.
 
Sea Purslane at Laughing Bird Caye National Park taken during the Strong Coasts Field Trip to Belize in June 2019.

Current research looks at growing red drum, a hearty fish that is easy to cultivate, with sea purslane, a Florida native sea vegetable. Sea purslane is commonly found on sand dunes along coasts and is vital to stabilizing these coastal zones and substrates. Cultivated sea purslane from MAP is sold to local restaurants and farmers markets. This plant is also a common in Caribbean islands and is frequently found in markets in Asian and European regions. It is in the same family as spinach, but has a milder and saltier flavor which pairs up nicely with the fresh grown red drum fish farmed at MAP. Dr. Suzanne Boxman’s research as a master’s and doctoral student in the USF Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, focused on two of MAP’s projects. Some products from that work, include a video on cooking sea purslane and a publication, Evaluation of water treatment capacity, nutrient cycling, and biomass production in a marine aquaponic system.

Cooking with Sea Purslane. A video produced by Suzanne Boxman, Emma Lopesz, and Colleen Naughton for Reclaim Is, a social media class at the University of South Florida.

MAP currently works with four fish species: red drum fish, Florida pompano, Almaco jack, and snook. Research on each of the species provides insights into developing better methods for improving captive maturation, spawning, and health management to name a few. Not only does this system provide nutritious fish for consumption, it also works to restore declining fish populations in the wild through this research. Aquaculture and aquaponic systems are gaining great traction in many parts of the world and are of growing interest in some of the coastal communities we work with in the Strong Coast program. As demand increases for food, energy, and water resources, integrated systems such as the ones we observed at MAP will be at the forefront of ensuring we address these needs in a sustainable manner.

About the Author. Estenia Ortiz Carabantes is a 1st year Ph.D student in Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida (USF) in Tampa, FL. She received her BS in Environmental Engineering Sciences at the University of Florida (UF) in Gainesville, FL and her AA at Miami Dade College in Miami, FL. Estenia previously worked with understanding mercury capture using modified activated carbon and has served on several university executive boards involving outreach and STEM education. Her research interests include water quality, water reuse, sustainability, food-energy-water systems, food security, and human and economic development. Estenia’s current research focuses on the the food-energy-water nexus as it relates to residential food production. In order to combat urban food insecurity, she hopes to continuously examine existing green infrastructure and re-imagine their function through a cultural, educational, and engineering lens.

STRONG COASTS is supported by a National Science Foundation Collaborative Research Traineeship (NRT) award (#1735320) led by the University of South Florida (USF) and the University of the Virgin Islands (UVI) to develop a community-engaged training and research program in systems thinking to better manage complex and interconnected food, energy, and water systems in coastal locations. The views expressed here do not reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

April 30, 2019

Science from the Inside Out: Science Communication and Science Policy

By Maya Carrasquillo

Strong Coasts prioritizes community engaged research, but researchers and academics often struggle to translate their work to broader audiences outside of  academia, and rarely are we trained on how to do this effectively. On April 5th, 2019, the Strong Coasts cohort hosted a Science Communication and Science Policy workshop to provide an opportunity for the USF community to learn science communication strategies to various audiences and also to learn about opportunities to engage in policy spheres.

The workshop started with a presentation by Dr. Drew Story who currently serves as a Congressional Fellow in the office of Sen. Chris Coons (DE) working on the energy and environment. Based on his diverse experiences as a science teacher, academic researcher, and now congressional staffer, Drew was able to offer a well-informed and practiced perspective of how to communicate science, including nuggets like making our communication memorable, meaningful, and miniature (short and sweet). Where we often fall short as researchers, is starting with the ‘what and how’ not the ‘why and who’ of our research. Why does our work matter? Why is it important? Who does our research impact? Who can benefit from knowing and applying this work? As researchers we’re trained to start with the details to make our case, but depending on the audience, whether it’s K-12 educators and students, policymakers or our family, the why is more important than the what.

One of the key points that resonated with me most from this session was that all of our research has a ‘why’ and it’s our responsibility to not only understand what that is, but to be able to communicate that driver to any audience. That is our key hook to making sure our message doesn’t get lost in the weeds when we strive to communicate with any audience.

Following this session, we also hosted a panel discussion featuring several AAAS Science, Technology and Policy Fellows (all USF alumni), who currently work in varying industries from water utility, to academia and policy. Each of the panelists shared their experiences of successfully applying to the AAAS Fellowship. They then discussed the ways in which they use the transferrable skills of engaging in science policy in their current roles for communication, and networking. They stressed the imp\

I think for each of us, this skillset of adaptability is critical to not only our successes as researchers, and communicators of that research, but also as our careers transform, there is great value in having the ability to shift and adjust as necessary to still reach a desired yet sometimes unexpected outcome. Whether that adjustment is in approach, or expanding partnerships, as researchers we’ve grown accustomed to making changes to still achieve a desired result, and to not let those changes hinder our progress. Connecting both segments from the day, our ability to know why we do what we do and stay rooted in that core ‘why’ of research, yet maintaining flexibility to adjust strategies towards achieving that ‘why’ is ultimately what will make us effective scientists and communicators, striving for a broader impact.

This was an excellent introduction to this topic and as we move forward in our Strong Coasts program, we are committed as a cohort to continue dialoguing on similar topics to ensure that we are not only being trained as productive  scientists, but contributing and thoughtful global citizens in the work that we strive to do within and for communities!

About the Author. Maya Elizabeth Carrasquillo is an Environmental Engineering PhD student at the University of South Florida. Her research interests are at the intersection of water, sustainability, and social justice. Her current research looks at stormwater management through an environmental justice lens to develop a community-based framework of sustainability, promoting more equitable development  of stormwater best management practices in coastal African American communities. Her work includes community partnerships in East Tampa, Florida and Bayview-Hunters Point in San Francisco, California. Maya holds a B.S. in Environmental Engineering with a minor in History from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Maya is also a recipient of the National GEM Fellowship, the McKnight Doctoral Fellowship and the Alfred P. Sloan Graduate Minority Scholarship Program, and has industry experience with Intel Corporation working on environmental treatment systems and diversity and inclusion projects.

STRONG COASTS is supported by a National Science Foundation Collaborative Research Traineeship (NRT) award (#1735320) led by the University of South Florida (USF) and the University of the Virgin Islands (UVI) to develop a community-engaged training and research program in systems thinking to better manage complex and interconnected food, energy, and water systems in coastal locations. The views expressed here do not reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.