Abstract: Traditional graduate programs in the life sciences are challenged by the accelerating pace of environmental degradation, the expanding role of information technology, and the increasing complexity of society. This scenario requires that we produce young ecologists who are not only technically proficient, but also adaptable to these increasing rates of change (NAS 1995, Greene et al. 1995, NRC 1996). Accordingly, there is need to provide ecologists with interdisciplinary skills, not only in the science of ecology but also in areas such as management, policy and environmental outreach - at the very least to provide training in how to create and work within interdisciplinary partnerships. Twenty senior ecologists recently described ecology as a discipline with a time limit, because much of what we study (and upon which society is dependent) is fast disappearing (Bazzaz et al. 1998). These authors contend that ecologists have a responsibility to humanity, one that we are not adequately meeting. They urge senior scientists to take the lead in pressing for transformation and they pledge themselves to that task. Likewise, Lubchenco (1998) proposed a new 'social contract for science' which calls for a commitment on the part of all scientists to devote their energies and talents to the most pressing problems of the day, in proportion to their importance, in exchange for public funding. Here, I focus on how changes in academic culture and graduate training in the environmental sciences can help us fulfill the goals of this new social contract for science. In this era of global environmental change and deterioration, there are many challenges and opportunities for scientists to provide useful science (Lubchenco 1998, NRC 1996), and educational programs/tools that can be used to guide citizens, managers and policy-makers in the decision making process (Pringle et al. 1993a; Bjorkland et al. 1997, 1998; Firth 1998; Pringle et al. 1999; NRCS 1999). There is also a critical need to better communicate scientific information that is already in hand, given that many current environmental policies are based on the science of past decades not the 1990s (Lubchenco 1998). It might be argued that someone approaching the field of environmental outreach might be best served through a degree in education. However, my premise here is that graduate students with strong scientific backgrounds can play a unique and effective role in communication of complex scientific issues (see Case Studies I and II below). While environmental outreach and education has been traditionally characterized as "soft" by the scientific community, our global future depends on effective communication of multiple and complex environmental issues. The two case studies presented here describe initiatives that have been developed through the University of Georgia Institute of Ecology's graduate masters program in Conservation and Sustainable Development: (1) the Upper Etowah Basin Initiative, which involves partnerships for science-based riverine protection policies in the Georgia Piedmont, USA; and (2) Water-for-Life, a community-based environmental outreach program in Sarapiqui, Costa Rica.
Pringle, C. M. 1999. Changing academic culture: Interdisciplinary, science-based graduate programs to meet environmental challenges in freshwater ecosystems. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 9: 615-620.
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