Exploring Integrating Socioecological Connections within LTER: Considering the Coweeta Listening Project (CLP) as a Model

In this working group, we will  brainstorm about how LTER scientists can translate long term ecological science into more democratically-produced forms of knowledge that are meaningful and beneficial for a larger cross section of local communities (citizens, public institutions, etc.). The group will use the Coweeta Listening Project (CLP) as a starting point and potential model (see https://listening.coweeta.uga.edu/).  We will explore its brief history of translating ecological science, then consider the experiences/possibilities of similar initiatives across other sites including the Jornada Basin, H.J. Andrews, and Florida Coastal Everglades LTERs. We will focus in particular on how LTERs and the LTER Network can draw on theoretical and methodological insights from the fields of political ecology and science and technology studies (STS).

Anticipated outcomes are (1) an outline for a cross-site collaborative research proposal and (2) an outline for a cross-site research paper that brings existing ecological data and results together. Through both products we hope to expand the LTER Network’s trans-disciplinary toolkit to integrate social-political-economic phenomena.