IRES-Track I: People, primates, and tropical forests: Integrated primatological and ecological research to advance human-primate coexistence and ecosystem health in Indonesia

San Diego State University Foundation, San Diego CA

Investigators

Abstract

This award is funded in whole under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2). This project provides opportunities for a total of 15 U.S. students from San Diego State University to engage in a 6-week long international field research experience focused on human-primate coexistence and ecosystem health in Sulawesi, Indonesia. This project will expand the diversity of the STEM workforce by recruiting student participants from underrepresented groups. Drawing from the expertise in primatology and tropical ecology of the PI and foreign mentor, students will conduct research that will advance our understanding of how primates adapt to human-induced environmental change, with implications for ways for people and primates to coexist, and how human activities affect the health of tropical ecosystems. Student participants will learn how to write a research proposal and carry out independent field research. Students will also benefit from the fieldwork experience in terms of personal growth and maturity and the development of invaluable life skills, such as interpersonal and cross-cultural communication. This international research experience will produce cohorts of students who are better prepared for research and for employment in increasingly multicultural workplace environments. It will also help increase the diversity of ideas and perspectives on ways to advance ecosystem health and the sustainable coexistence of humans and wildlife. This project will engage U.S. students in high-quality collaborative research in an international setting and expand the diversity of the STEM workforce by recruiting students from underrepresented groups. Five students from San Diego State University, a designated Hispanic Serving Institution and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution, will conduct field research in Sulawesi, Indonesia for a 6-week period during each summer of the award. Drawing from the intersecting fields of primatology and tropical forest ecology, the overarching theme of the research is human-primate coexistence and ecosystem health. Under the mentorship of the PI and the foreign faculty mentor at Hasanuddin University, South Sulawesi, students will develop projects focused on human-primate conflict at the forest-farm edge, human-primate interactions in a provisioning context, the impact of climate change on plant phenology, and the role of primates in tropical forest regeneration. Students will gain experience developing a research question, writing a research proposal, collecting data, using those data to test hypotheses, and analyzing and disseminating the research findings. This international research experience will enable students to develop skills in diverse research methods and to build teamwork, problem-solving, and cross-cultural communication skills critical for becoming globally competent scientists and professionals. The inherent collaborative nature of this project means that there will be direct contributions to the capacity building of faculty, students, and park staff in Indonesia as well, via expanded research skills and dissemination of research findings to international audiences. The project results will also help inform forest management policy, the development of mitigation efforts aimed at minimizing the frequency and intensity of human-primate interactions, and conservation outreach programs focused on expanding people’s awareness of the threats to Sulawesi’s endemic flora and fauna. Ultimately, this project will showcase the value of interdisciplinary research and international collaboration in addressing today’s grand challenges and produce a cadre of STEM students who are globally engaged scientists and professionals. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.