Workshop Proposal: Perspectives: Examining Complex Ecological Dynamics through Arts, Humanities and Science Integration; Reno, Nevada; June 19-21, 2015

University Of Alaska Fairbanks Campus, Fairbanks AK

Investigators

Abstract

Society faces unprecedented challenges due to environmental change. Addressing the grand challenges of our time will require a synthesis of multiple perspectives, including science, arts, and the humanities. These fields share a common aim of exposing hidden truths about a complex world. This workshop will bring together individual artists, scientists, philosophers, historians, social scientists, representatives from funding agencies in the arts, humanities and sciences, and institutions with significant histories and perspectives on integration across these areas. In combination, this cross-disciplinary group can foster empathy, increase openness to science, and empower society to access multiple sources of information as critical decisions are made related to land and resource management, conservation, and societal health. A compilation of resources currently available to encourage integration across these disciplines will be made publicly available, and workshop activities will be posted on the Field Stations and Marine Laboratories art blog. Finally, this intellectual collaboration will broaden participation in scientific arenas in unparalleled ways. The aim of this workshop is to expand the depth and breadth of interdisciplinary efforts in which arts and humanities contribute to fundamental inquiry and analyses of the grand challenges facing social-environmental systems. Synthesizing perspectives on social-environmental challenges in the context of place-based and problem-focused research promises progress in solving problems that cannot be achieved by separate disciplines working in relative isolation. The arts and humanities, and the numerous subdisciplines included in these generalized disciplinary headings, will offer a productive source of ideas and approaches to the grand challenges of this era. The workshop is risky; many of the proposed participants have never worked together before. A strategic agenda will guide the 3-day workshop and clear goals are identified. These include the outlines of a common research agenda, a roadmap for future activities to achieve this agenda, and co-authorship of manuscripts. The workshop will be held at the Nevada Museum of Art - Center for Art and the Environment and attended by 25-30 individuals who will chart a new frontier that directly implements the Memorandum of Understanding recently signed by the National Science Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.