The Department of Earth System Science and Policy at the University of North Dakota is accepting applications for prospective students seeking a Master of Science (M.S.), Master of Environmental Management (M.E.M.), or a Ph.D. Degree and interested in topics such as the Water-Food-Energy nexus or alternatives industrial crops as feedstocks for energy use.
Applications are encouraged from students with a background and interests in geography, agronomy, remote sensing, ecology, energy. An interest in learning, or existing skill with, quantitative analysis and modeling knowledge would be an advantage. The main research areas are as follow. 1. Alternatives industrial crops such as hemp, crambe, camelina or flax can be integrated into conventional cropping systems to help improve crop productivity and conserve and/or restore damage ecosystems. Those ancient crops are adapted to various climate conditions, have low nutrients requirement and good resistance to diseases and pests crops. However beside their ecological benefit, these crops are also valuable reservoirs of fatty acids (oilseed or hempseed) or fiber (hemp), for both food and industry. This research has two sub-research areas. (1) to assess the suitability for those alternative industrial crops in North Dakota taking into account the potential productivity, tradeoff with other crops and environmental limitations. It involves the use of GIS processing, decision tree classification, and transformation of regional economic and social scenarios into decision tree methods. (2) To evaluate the potential of remote sensing data to estimate hemp, cameline and crambe, biomass accumulation, moisture content, energy content, and other important elements affecting final yield and biofuel quality. 2. The nexus between water, energy, and food production (WEF) is important to consider for effective resource management and risk mitigation. A WEF systems approach provides the thinking and evidence-based data necessary to take an integrated approach to the WEF Nexus issues, anticipates the problems, and develops plans to resolve such problems. Earth observation data and other Geospatial data and technology can are key to build a data system necessary to achieve integrated resource management goals. The project seeks to investigate the WEF nexus in North Dakota and the opportunity to bridge remote sensing and other geospatial tools and derived products in the development of plans, strategies, and tactics for managing the W-E-F Nexus at appropriate scales in North Dakota. Interested students should contact Earth System Science and Policy at the University of North Dakota is an interdisciplinary department which focuses on the sustainability of environmental-human interactions within the greater context of the Earth System. The primary areas of faculty mentored research includes: glaciology and glacio-hydrology, agro-ecology, renewable energy, geomorphology, public policy, environmental economics, Earth systems modeling, and geospatial analysis. These topics can be tailored to fit graduate student research interests and the possibility of tuition waiver is available. Students from a wide range of fields are encouraged to apply, such as Biology, Climatology, Environmental Science, Geography, Geology, and Hydrology, as well as Economics, Policy, and Political Science. For prospective students interested in applying, please contact Dr. Soizik Laguette directly ([email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>) or Dr. Jeff VanLooy (Graduate Director) of the Department of Earth System Science and Policy at the University of North Dakota at (701) 777-4755, or by e-mail: [email protected]. Please see the UND Graduate School website (www.und.edu/dept/grad/) for application instructions. Recommended deadline for application is February 1st however, early applications will receive top priority for admission and possible tuition waiver. For more information, see the following websites: The University of North Dakota: www.und.edu The UND Graduate School: http://www.und.edu/dept/grad/ UND Earth System Science and Policy: http://essp.und.edu/ Grand Forks Visitors Bureau: http://www.visitgrandforks.com/main.php ----------------------------------------------------------- Soizik Laguette, Ph.D. Associate Professor and Chair University of North Dakota Department of Earth System Science and Policy Clifford Hall, Stop 9011 Grand Forks, ND 58202-9011 Phone: 701-777-2532 Fax: 701-777-2940 E-mail: [email protected]
