July 16, 2021
Geographers awarded NSF grant to study effects of rural wildfires
Audrey Joslin and Marcellus Caldas, both from the College of Arts and Sciences' geography and geospatial sciences department, have received a $446,000 National Science Foundation grant that began on July 1 and runs through Dec. 31, 2024.
The project aims to understand the effects of wildfire in rural landscapes and how perceived wildfire risks shape agricultural land management and landowner decisions to participate in conservation programs and practices. Studying the interactions between wildfires, rural conservation efforts, and responses of farmers and landowners provides a critical foundation for understanding how environmental changes and extreme events may influence incentives to pursue conservation on the land.
The project works closely with local stakeholders and supports the education and training of graduate and undergraduate students in interdisciplinary research and methods.
Joslin is the principal investigator for the grant and Caldas is a co-principal investigator. They are joined by Jason Bergtold, agricultural economics, and Ignacio Ciampitti, agronomy, who are also co-principal investigators.
The National Science Foundation is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 "to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense..."
Visit the geography and geospatial sciences department website to learn more about the program.