Spatially Connected

General Description:
Utilize your years of industry experience and knowledge to assess and identify practical applications of GIS in the environmental field. This is a challenging opportunity to provide leadership and management of Esri's strategic marketing and community outreach efforts as they relate to the development and use of GIS within the environmental market globally.


For full job description:  http://ow.ly/6kjVv

Every month the informal Conservation GIS group meets for a social happy hour.  All are welcome and encouraged to come and meet other GIS professionals in the Portland metro area.  Here are the details:


Produce Row again... 
(204 Southeast Oak Street)

Last month we had a good turnout and some great beer as well as a few requests to return.

Hope to see you there this Wednesday, December 14th.  (sometime after 5)

Here is the link to the Cartographer GS-1370-05 vacancy (R9-12-532442-KB) which opened December 8 and closes on December 22, 2011.  It is advertised to all US Citizens. 

http://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/304703900 

University of Kentucky is happy to announce the formation of the New Mappings Collaboratory in the Department of Geography. “New Maps” draws upon both applied and conceptual traditions in mapping practices and mapping thought and represents a stream of scholarship focused on public engagement, “big data” and user- generated Internet content, as well as experimentation in place-based
thinking, analysis, and representation. As a catalyst for mapping engagements on and off campus, New Maps works to promote creativity, excellence, and interaction around emergent mapping and GIS technologies.  A range of faculty from the social sciences, humanities and natural sciences (in addition to Geography) are engaged with the
New Maps project.

Current faculty and graduate students research projects/interests include:

- Working with community partners to design and build participatory GIS and mapping tools and products;
- Collection and analysis of a range of user generated data including Twitter Tweets, Google Placemarks and Flickr photos;
- Citizen science in the production of scientific knowledge, including do-it-yourself aerial image capture using helium balloons and kites;
-  Analyzing the spatiality of online social networks through volunteered geographic data;
-  Applying GIS techniques to the digital humanities and related disciplines; and
-  Ethics, implications, and the use of geographic information and technologies in an age of ubiquitous location and surveillance.

We encourage students interested in graduate studies in these areas to apply for study at the University of Kentucky.  More details available
http://www.uky.edu/AS/Geography/Program/Graduate/#application.


The deadline for applications is January 15, 2012.  Fellowships and teaching assistantships (including full tuition waivers) are available on a competitive basis.

For more information please see http://newmaps.as.uky.edu/ or contact
Dr. Jeremy Crampton (jcrampton AT uky.edu), Dr. Matthew Wilson (matthew.w.wilson AT uky.edu) or Dr. Matthew Zook (zook AT uky.edu).

Researchers at the University of Toronto have studied how social connections on Twitter relate to geographic location. The study revealed that Twitter users who regularly interact are often located near one another, writes Richard Florida, director of the university's Martin Prosperity Institute. "Their findings indicate that place and proximity continue to matter even in social media. Twitter doesn't replace the networks that exist in the real world -- it reinforces them and makes them stronger," he writes. 


To read the full article:  http://www.theatlanticcities.com/technology/2011/12/how-twitter-proves-place-matters/663/

December 15, 2011 Mr. Huancheng Ma

Ecosystem Management - valuable ideas about habitat conservation in SW China

In China, there has been a ban on logging since 1998. Since then, many forest restoration and conservation projects have been established, but none that address issues on whole ecosystem health. Dr. Huancheng Ma will share what he has learned about forest management here in the Pacific Northwest and how some components of our various management strategies like the Northwest Forest Plan or the model of our National Parks system can be used to benefit regions in SW China. Ma is a professor of silviculture at SW Forestry University.

Talks are free with RSVP to me before Thursday, December 15, or pay $8 museum admission at entrance.  Plan to come early if possible to enjoy conversation with other WFI fellows from South Korea, Taiwan, Cameroon, and China.

Job Title: Marine Spatial Analyst
Job Location: Stennis Space Center, Mississippi, USA
Job Type: Full time Contract Position
Company: CSS-Dynamac** (http://www.consolidatedsafety.com/)
Start Date: Jan 2, 2012 or until filled
Where To Apply: https://jobs-consolidatedsafety.icims.com/jobs/1354/job
Salary: $ Negotiable (commensurate with experience)
 
Responsibilities:
A person with academic training in marine biology, ecology, fisheries, and spatial or landscape ecology is being sought for a full-time contract position with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA), Biogeography Branch. The Branch conducts ecological studies that map, characterize, assess, and model the spatial distributions and movements of estuarine and marine organisms across habitats throughout the United States and Island Territories. The successful candidate will have the following core responsibilities.

*Provide statistical and analytical support to projects that map marine ecosystems and the distributions of biota in the Gulf of Mexico. Initial efforts will focus on mapping fish and their associated habitats.


Specific duties include:

*Produce detailed statistical summaries of collected data (e.g.estimates of means and variance by seasons, year, other categories, quantiles summaries, etc.);


*Evaluate and analyze field data to create maps of benthic habitats and species distributions;


*Develop cartographic products and associated metadata;


*Assist with writing technical reports and journal articles; and,

*Travel to agencies (federal, state, academic) that may provide data or expertise to vet analytical approaches or products.

*Provide statistical and analytical support for other Biogeography Branch projects including work with deep-water corals, coastal pollution, and
marine birds and mammals.

Essential Qualifications:

* Master of Science degree in a Biology, Ecology, Zoology, or a related field;
* Excellent written and oral communication skills;
* Graduate training in statistics and demonstrated experience in multivariate statistics;
* Relevant experience or academic training in Geographic Information Systems, especially ArcGIS;
* Knowledge of marine biology and spatial ecology.

Preferred Qualifications:

* Experience with ArcGIS editing and the use of ArcGIS extensions, such as Spatial Analyst, 3D Analyst and Geostatistical Analyst;
* Experience with GIS modeling techniques;
* Experience with statistical software e.g., SAS, Primer and/or JMP;
* Knowledge of coastal and marine ecosystems in the Gulf of Mexico.

*Where to Apply*:
https://jobs-consolidatedsafety.icims.com/jobs/1354/job
<https://jobs-consolidatedsafety.icims.com/jobs/1349/job>

Mapping Eastern Oregon Juniper Encroachment

The Institute for Natural Resources-Portland (INR-Portland), located on PSU campus, is conducting an environmental monitoring project to study the juniper encroachment in Eastern Oregon. Historical aerial photographs from the 50’s-80s’s need to be geo-referenced and mosiacked for a remote area in eastern Oregon for several watersheds for validation of a historical juniper density and distribution map being created with Landsat TM imagery. The aerial photographs will also be used as training data for historic Landsat images. Estimated a total of 100 hours of work, with a chance of additional project work in the future. The ideal candidate is able to work independently, pay attention to detail, familiar with eastern Oregon environmental issues and has experience geo-referencing satellite imagery or aerial photography.  Familiarity with ERDAS Imagine is necessary.  Pay $15/hr.  Flexible work schedule is fine, 10-25 hrs/week. 

Please contact matt.noone@oregonstate.edu for more information.

A great job opportunity to Marine GIS with leading scientist Dawn Wright:

Join Chief Scientist Dawn Wright in her Mission to Help the Oceans
http://esriurl.com/3357

Graduate Assistantship: Climate Change, Water, and Ecosystem Services at University of Wyoming

Melanie Murphy is recruiting a MS or PhD student to investigate how long-term changes in climate will impact water (distribution, abundance, quality) and ecosystem services (e.g., biodiversity and livestock production) in Wyoming range systems. The effects of climate change are critically important in semi-arid systems where water is the ultimate limiting factor. Water availability is predicted to decrease in Wyoming rangelands regardless of precipitation due to temperature-related increases in vegetative evapotranspiration rates. In addition, annual water supply in high elevation systems is dependent on spring snowmelt from the mountains which may be significantly impacted by shifts in precipitation timing. Water shortage has negative consequences for both biodiversity and human resource use.

Semi-permanent wetlands are indicators of surface water availability. The selected student will use field-based and remotely-sensed data to characterize wetlands and quantify biodiversity. The student will then link these components with human resource use under alternative scenarios of climate change. Student will also have the opportunity to incorporate molecular methods to quantify biodiversity and landscape connectivity (landscape geneticsapproaches).

Prospective students with a background in natural resources, ecology, and/or population genetics are encouraged to apply. Evidence of robust analytical skills, scientific writing, strong work ethic, passion for scientific inquiry, ability to work under harsh field conditions and aptitude for collaborative research are expected.

My spatial ecology and landscape genetics research group is focused on understanding fine-scale distribution and functional connectivity of animal species in ecological systems (https://sites.google.com/site/murphylabuwyo/). University of Wyoming (www.uwyo.edu) is ideally located in Laramie, Wyoming with easy access to varied field sites and outdoor recreation opportunities. In addition, the campus is only 1 hour from Fort Collins and 2 hours from Denver, CO.

Requirements: GRE 1200 (verbal + quantitative, 4 writing), GPA 3.0 (BS)/ 3.3 (MS). Closing date: Dec. 10, 2011 (review will begin immediately). Send materials to Dr. Melanie Murphy (melanie.murphy@uwyo.edu). Also complete a departmental application (http://www.uwyo.edu/renewable/info.asp?p=22152). PhD students are encouraged to apply to the innovative Program in Ecology (www.uwyo.edu/pie), an integrated, interdepartmental PhD program in ecological science. Position starts August 2012.