September 26, 2019

Armadillo Room, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL

NRT Annual ConferenceSeptember 25-27, 2019

Erica A.H. Smithwick@ericasmithwick

Professor of Geography

Director, Ecology Institute

Associate Director, Institutes of Energy and Environment

The Pennsylvania State University

Development of Trainee Leadership SkillsLandscapeU: Student-centered, transdisciplinary training

“If the world of working and living relies on collaboration,creativity, definition and framing of problems and if it requiresdealing with uncertainty, change, and intelligence that isdistributed across cultures, disciplines, and tools—thengraduate programs should foster transdisciplinarycompetencies that prepare students for having meaningful andproductive lives in such a world.” (Derry and Fischer 2005)

What is transdisciplinary

science?

• Boundary Crossing (disciplines, institutions, communities)

• Collaborative Deconstruction(methodology/practice, problem framing)

• Crossing Knowledge Systems (“ways of knowing”, cultures, co-creation)

• Solutions-oriented

Transdisciplinary Training

Learning and Leadership

Barriers

Time

(Lack of) Institutional flexibility

Inadequate rewards

systems or incentives

Credit burdens

Disciplinary Praxis Language

Lack of expertise

RegenerativeLandscape Science

Ecology SocialScience

Arts & Engineering

Human Dimensions of Natural Resources

Landscape ArchitecturePolicy &Practice

Ethics, Values& Risk

Analysis

Co-Design

• Include new disciplines • Engage local and global communities

• Shape solutions• Enable career pathways

• Self-development• Team-facilitation• Systems thinking• Strategic thinking• Ethical practice• Innovation

Cultivating Leadership

Transdisciplinary competencies

Cultivating Leadership

Ø Actionable science

Ø Student ownership

Ø Team culture

Solutions through partnerships

Individual Development Plan

Co-design

Questions?

Leadership Lessons Learned from Starting a Project Recycling Plastic Waste in Uganda

NSF Research Traineeship Annual Meeting Northwestern UniversityPaige Balcom, UC Berkeley Sept 26, 2019

Berkeley InFEWS Program

Innovations at the Nexus of Food, Energy, and Water Systems

● Interdisciplinary, actionable, impactful, scalable research● Courses, workshops, fieldwork/internships, mentoring● Like-minded community

2

My Research Story: Takataka Plastics

Leadership, confidence, & broad impacts

3

Starting a Project from Scratch

Assessment & Interviews

4

Finding partners

Defining Problem & Finding Funding

5

Defining Problem, Hypothesizing Solution & Rapid Prototyping

Big Ideas Entrepreneurship Competition

Design, Build, & Test

6

Pivot & Pilot

7

Broad Impacts

8

Environmental & Community Health Benefits from Cleaning up Plastic Waste Local Job Creation

Broad Impacts

9

Student Exchange Teaching

Importance of InFEWS Community

Balancing traditional, strict ME requirements with InFEWS

10

Leadership Lessons Learned

● Vision & Team○ How to craft a vision, recruit people

to believe in the vision, & develop into shared vision

11

● Just try attitude○ Overcome “I have no idea what I’m doing” paralysis○ Consult experts & literature, formulate idea, and try it

at small scale○ Accept failures & grow from them

Prepared for Impact

Thanks to interdisciplinary InFEWS, I have:

● Grown in leadership & confidence● Feel excited and prepared for career as a professor and to

conduct research with big impact on people around the world

12

Questions?

Please visit the UC Berkeley InFEWS poster in session 2 #210 13

NRT: Enhancing Conservation Science and Practice

A Transdisciplinary Graduate Program for the Next Generation of Conservation Leaders

University of Maine

In Maine and Elsewhere, Conservation Problems Are Rapidly Changing

o Millinocket: A Rural Forest Community Loses its Industry

o Clams: A Major Resource is in Decline

o Dams: Old Dams, New Problems

As A Result, New Forms of Training Needed to Enhance Conservation Science and Practice Leadership

How Research is Needed

When Research in Needed

Why Transdisciplinary Research is Needed

Bringing It All Together

What Would New Forms Look Like?

Teamwork is the New Leadership

Leadership as Partnership

Leadership is About Crossing Boundaries

Building the Next Generation of Leaders

Disciplines Coming Together

Wetland Ecology

Economics and Policy

Conservation Social Science

Geospatial Analysis

Environmental Communication

Remote Sensing

Social Psychology and Community Engagement

Forest Ecosystem Physiology

Forest Biometrics Modeling

Innovation Will Be Essential

Focus on Solutions (e.g., Decision Support Tools) Focus on Resilience (i.e., Drawing from Theory in Different

Disciplines) Focus on Scale (e.g., Individuals, Communities, Watersheds, States,

Nations)

The ‘Take Homes’

Leadership training must not be standalone training

Students must learn an array of leadership strategies

Students need to learn to integrate their knowledge with that of others

The situations will keep changing so capacity to innovate and reframe will be essential skill

Questions?

GAUSSIDevelopment of Trainee Leadership Skills

Floor 2: Armadillo Room

Rich Feller Ph.DProfessor Counseling and Career

Development

Career Planning ContextGAUSSI’s ProgramFindingsRecommendationsDiscussion

2

Career Planning Context1. Less stable workplace to support the “grand narrative”

2. Workers as “free agents” with portfolio careers

3. Faculty positions & tenure more competitive…gov’t $ commitments decline

4. Private sector seeks STEM talent able to EXPLAIN “value add proposition”,boundrycross, & entrepreneurial bias

5. Change…“big data” requires new skill set configurations/translations, ability to make“pitch”, self-awareness, & career management

Stuck (“I’m ah”) vs. Becoming

3

4

1. Provide assessments & experiences toexpand career options

2. Expand collaboration with industrial partners to mentor & promote career planning

3. Support self awareness to improve communication & team development

4. Support transition from graduate school

GAUSSI Career Planning Program

5

6

7

8

Performance Based not Self-Report Aptitudes

How Many Slides Should I Have?

RISIN

G ACTIO

N

CLIMAX

EXPOSITION

RESOLUTION

FALLING ACTION

SOLUTION

TRACTION

THE ASK

PROBLEM

INTRODUCTION

Storytelling Tool(Customer/You/News)|

Pain Point Why Status Quo Fails

*Hero Moment* Product Reveal|How does it

work?

Market | CompetitionTraction| Team

Proforma & AskLink to Intro Story – “Nail It.”

2-420%

1-210%

2-420%

3-740%

2-310%

Between 10-20 slides total for 10 minute pitch

10

We all tell stories & play games

What if individuals could sit with 4-5 peers playing self-directed game that led to a written Clarification Sketch ?

11

12

13

14

Findings

18

Recommendations1.On campus career planning for STEM grad students

needs to reinvent “value proposition”2. “life design” principles should complement

“job-naming & job-finding” interventions3. Connection to/networking with STEM entrepreneurs is a key

asset to “entrepreneurial thinking/aspirations beyonduniversity positions”

4. “pitch skills” observation/practice/video & peer feedbackconnect the dots for transitioning grad researchers fromcampus labs to private sector aspirations/options

5. On-line self-directed/consumer model personality and aptitudeinnovation tools are appealing

19

Questions

Rich.Feller@colostate.edu

It’s not just about finishing as fast as possible!

Developing students’ professional skills to ensure future successAllie Johnson

PhD Student, Hearing and Speech Sciences

Poster #305NRT-DESE # 1449815Flexibility in Language Processes and Technology: Human- and Global-Scale

Languageat Maryland

“Don’t be like my cat.” –Colin Phillips

Develop a Vision for the Big Picture: “What do you want to do with your life?”

v Write a training planv Meet annually to discuss

v Goalsv Prioritiesv Progressv Needs

Participate in Leadership Training

Emphasizes the value of student

leadership

Gives students agency

Students develop the skills to initiate

and execute effectively

When Reality ≠ Vision

v Get buy-in from other students: “Who’s with me?”

v Take advantage of campus resources

v Create an action plan with support from peers and mentors

Case Study: Writing GroupsvVision: develop writing habits in preparation

for a career as research faculty

vReality: Writing tasks aplenty, but the process of writing was unsustainable; unhealthy, inefficient, anxious, mediocre-quality binge writing

vBuy-in from students with similar experiences

vSupport from mentors and program staff

vCampus resources (Graduate School Writing Center; Library)

vAction: Start a weekly writing support and accountability group (with snacks and coffee)

Questions?

Getting off to a good start with an early

immersive experience

Fred GouldNorth Carolina State University

Getting off to a good start with an early

immersive experience

The challenge of building interdisciplinary student teams

Agricultural Biotechnology in Our Evolving Food, Energy & Water Systems

1) Students will use Responsible Innovation approaches for design and deployment of future agricultural biotechnology products that will enhance FEW systems.

2) Students will use evidence-based approaches for elevating the level of public discourse on agricultural biotechnology

Agricultural Biotechnology in Our Evolving Food, Energy & Water Systems

Jonathan Foley 2014

“GMOs have frequently failed to live up to their potential, not because they are inherently flawed….

Jonathan Foley 2014

“GMOs have frequently failed to live up to their potential, not because they are inherently flawed…. but because they have been deployed poorly into the complex social and environmental contexts of the real world.”

CommunicationRhetoric & Digital

MediaScience, Technology

& Society

AgriculturalExtension Education

Agricultural Sciences

Agricultural Sciences

FunctionalGenomics

PlantMolecular

Biology

ResourceEconomics

BiomathematicsAgricultural

Biotechnology in FEW Systems

First Student Cohort 9 students from 45 applicants

Agriculture

Wetlands

10 Farmer Interviews

Cotton Insects

Corn Weeds

Drop This Essential

It did not meet my expectations

It surpassedmy expectations

It did not meet my expectations

It surpassedmy expectations

Getting off to a good start with an early

immersive experience

The challenge of building interdisciplinary student teams

Questions?