
Modeling Human-Wildlife Coexistence
Overview:
Protecting biodiversity while simultaneously meeting the resource needs of a growing human population requires a better understanding of the spatiotemporal linkages between people and nature, as well as the underlying mechanisms (e.g., individual behaviors, global forces) that influence those linkages. This project will focus on a globally endangered, conservation flagship wildlife species in a global biodiversity hotspot to explore and explain complex human-environment dynamics. The three interrelated objectives are to:
Collaborators and Advisors:
Simon Levin, Princeton University (postdoctoral advisor)
Volker Grimm, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research
Adam Barlow, WildTeam
Funding:
National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center
Header image credit: Michigan State University
Overview:
Protecting biodiversity while simultaneously meeting the resource needs of a growing human population requires a better understanding of the spatiotemporal linkages between people and nature, as well as the underlying mechanisms (e.g., individual behaviors, global forces) that influence those linkages. This project will focus on a globally endangered, conservation flagship wildlife species in a global biodiversity hotspot to explore and explain complex human-environment dynamics. The three interrelated objectives are to:
- Design and implement a systems model of human-environment interactions that uses state-of-the-art agent-based approaches.
- Create new methodologies to empirically calibrate and validate model behavior based on synthesized datasets from disparate disciplines (e.g., data on wildlife occurrence, human attitudes, natural resource consumption, and forest dynamics).
- Examine future socioeconomic and ecological impacts of different conservation policy scenarios (e.g., payments for ecosystem services).
Collaborators and Advisors:
Simon Levin, Princeton University (postdoctoral advisor)
Volker Grimm, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research
Adam Barlow, WildTeam
Funding:
National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center
Header image credit: Michigan State University