UDC faculty and staff awarded USDA grant for two-year research project

Dr. Amanda Huron, associate professor of political science and interdisciplinary social sciences and coordinator of the political science program in the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences and Dr. Elizabeth Gearin, a project specialist in environmental planning at CAUSES, have been awarded a $90,000 grant by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

The grant, titled “Mapping Historic and Contemporary Ecological Stewardship in Washington, DC,” will support a two-year research project investigating historic and contemporary ecological stewardship in Washington, DC. The proposed research project builds on the emerging field of civic ecology, which promotes hands-on stewardship practices that integrate local civic, cultural and environmental values. Using the U.S. Forest Service’s STEW-MAP survey tool as a foundation for the work, the principal investigators will identify where and how local ecological stewardship occurs in the District, including how and why some groups achieve greater and long-term impacts and sustainability. Research in local archives will uncover earlier histories of stewardship which may help inform current practices. The final products will include a publicly accessible online map and two peer-reviewed articles. For more information, please contact Dr. Amanda Huron at amanda.huron@udc.edu