Dr. Stephanie Miller, UMaine SBE and Mitchell Center for Sustainable Solutions: Understanding Conservation through the Lens of Quantitative Ecology
Growing threats to ecological systems from climate and land-use changes have led to increased public interest in environmental conservation efforts. However, the process by which conservation actions are formulated and informed by scientific research may be less apparent to people not engaged in active conservation efforts. In this seminar, Dr. Miller will describe her understanding of conservation as a scientific discipline, present a systematic planning framework, and use this framework to connect her previous, ongoing, and prospective research endeavors to conservation planning. The presentation of her research will cover results from a past project aimed at evaluating the Conserving Nature’s Stage concept, as well as two projects she is now working on linked to short-term forecasting of breeding bird populations and blueberry crop production under changing climate scenarios. She will conclude the presentation by outlining her future research interests in sustainable landscape planning, using it as a setting to highlight how bringing conservation planning strategies to a broader audience could promote more mutualistic outcomes in human-environmental systems.
Dr. Stephanie Miller is a postdoctoral researcher in the School of Biology and Ecology and the Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions at The University of Maine, working with Dr. Brian McGill. She is a quantitative ecologist interested in understanding biodiversity distributions and ecological processes across spatial scales and developing products from ecological research that can inform planning solutions for conservation and climate change adaptation. Dr. Miller has received degrees in Zoology, Population and Conservation Biology, and Forest Science. She considers herself a lifelong learner motivated to find ways to improve humanity’s relationship with the natural world.
Hosted by Brian McGill
