Environmental policy, climate change, social ecological systems job at UC Davis

FACULTY POSITION ANNOUNCEMENT

Assistant Professor of Environmental Policy, Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, Davis

The University of California at Davis is pleased to announce recruitment for a nine-month tenure-track faculty position in Environmental Policy specializing in environmental politics, policy, and governance. The successful candidate will join the Department of Environmental Science and Policy in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at the rank of Assistant Professor. This position includes the expectation that the appointee will conduct mission-oriented research and outreach of relevance to the California Agricultural Experiment Station. Criteria for appointment include: a Ph.D. or equivalent in political science, environmental policy, public policy, urban planning, or related field; a strong interest in environmental policy in the context of coupled human-natural systems with a focus on climate change adaptation and/or mitigation, a record of excellence in scholarly research with an emphasis on quantitative methods; and demonstrable potential to establish a competitively-funded research program relevant to enhancing environmental quality. The appointee will be responsible for teaching undergraduate courses in environmental policy and be actively involved in undergraduate advising, curricular development, and department and university service. The appointee is also expected to teach graduate courses, mentor graduate students, and participate in the outreach programs of the department and college. 

Applicants should submit materials via the following website:

https://secure.caes.ucdavis.edu/Recruitment/.  Additional inquiries can be directed to James Sanchirico, Search Committee Chair, Department of Environmental Science and Policy, One Shields Avenue, University of California, Davis, CA  95616, telephone (530) 754-9883, jsanchirico@ucdavis.edu. The position will remain open until filled but to ensure consideration, applications should be received by October 1, 2012.

UC Davis is an affirmative action/equal employment opportunity employer and is dedicated to recruiting a diverse faculty community.  We welcome all qualified applicants to apply, including women, minorities, veterans, and individuals with disabilities.

Call for Proposals: Dupont Summit on Science, Techology and Environmental Policy

From The Policy Studies Organization:

"The Policy Studies Organization (PSO) invites you to submit a proposal for the 2012 Dupont Summit focused on science, technology and environmental policy issues. The Summit will be held at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, DC on Friday, December 7, 2012. The purpose of the conference is to promote dialogue about current policy concerns and to provide a civil space for discussion across the political spectrum.  The format will include panel discussions along with some individual presentations.  You are welcomed to submit a topic proposal or a proposal that includes others beside yourself for a panel. We encourage proposals to be sent in before our early deadline of May 1, 2012 for priority consideration to PSO executive director Daniel Gutierrez-Sandoval at Daniel Gutierrez dgutierrezs@ipsonet.org.  Proposals will continue to be accepted after May 1st until September 30, 2012, the final deadline.  For more information, visit our website. The Policy Studies Organization publishes 11 journals and 3 book series. We promote discussion of policy concerns and further research and dissemination of policy scholarship. Please contact me with any questions. Regards, Michael Horka Policy Studies Organization"

Research in Progress Lunch on Wednesday, April 4

Dear All,

Please join us at 12pm for the Research in Progress (RIP) Lunchtime discussion on Wednesday, April 4th, 2012!

Come out, have lunch, and learn about:

“Environmental Justice and Complexity: Using Agent-Based Models for Environmental Policy and Planning"

While the problem of the unequal distribution of environmental risk across the socioeconomic spectrum is widely acknowledged, there is no such clarity with respect to the cause of the phenomenon. In this stream of research, we recognize the validity of different theoretical perspectives and the complexity of social and urban dynamics through the development of an agent-based simulation model. Using the model, we are exploring the social circumstances under which environmental justice issues emerge and the policies that may be useful for addressing this complex, dynamic problem.

-Adam Eckerd

Assistant Professor

CPAP

When: Wednesday, 4^th April 2012

Venue: 3rd Floor Library, 1021 Prince Street

Time: 12PM

Looking forward to seeing all of you!!

Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Internship Program - Fall 2012 Applications Now Being Accepted

The National Academies Christine Mirzayan Science & Technology Policy Graduate Fellowship Program is an early career educational and training opportunity.  It is designed to engage its Fellows in the analytical process that informs U.S. science and technology policy.  Fellows develop basic skills essential to working or participating in science policy at the federal, state, or local levels.

See: http://sites.nationalacademies.org/PGA/policyfellows/index.htm.

National APA Conference Student Scholarship Application

From the National Capital Area Chapter of the American Planning Association:
"The National Capital Area Chapter of the American Planning Association (NCAC-APA) is pleased to announce three (3) travel scholarships (up to $500 each) to the 2012 National APA Conference in Los Angeles! The conference will be held from April 14 – 17, 2012. This scholarship is intended for travel reimbursement and housing costs associated with the conference only and will not apply to registration fees.

Please complete the attached application and return no later than 4:59 p.m. on March 30, 2012 to the NCAC-APA Executive Board. Both electronic and hardcopy submissions will be accepted; however, the application must be received no later than March 30.

For consideration, please email your complete application to brooke.fossey@dc.gov

—OR—

Mail your complete application to:

Brooke Fossey

Transportation Planner

District Department of Transportation

Progressive Transportation Services Administration

55 M Street SE, Suite 400

Washington, DC 20003

Eligibility Criteria:

-       Must be currently enrolled in a graduate program for urban planning or field relating to urban planning (see attached application for related field definition).

-       Must reside within the NCAC-APA region (see attached application).

-       Must be a current NCAC-APA member.

Please feel free to forward this email to any interested person. Any questions can be directed to Brooke Fossey atbrooke.fossey@dc.gov or (202) 497-0164.

Thank you!

NCAC-APA Executive Board"


Application as pdf file
Application as doc file

MI Summer Internships

The Metropolitan Institute is currently seeking interns for two programs – Policy Informatics and Sustainability. Internships with the Metropolitan Institute provide opportunities to contribute meaningfully to the research enterprise at Virginia Tech. Interns can contribute to research projects, assist in media outreach such as blogging, and work with out team to organize events and roundtables.

Undergraduate students (especially juniors and seniors) and graduate students majoring in public policy, urban planning, public administration, information systems, and management, or related fields are encouraged to apply.

Please review the complete description of the positions for more information.

RARE volunteer aids downtown rebirth - Coast River Business Journal : New Business & Features

RARE volunteer aids downtown rebirth - Coast River Business Journal : New Business & Features: The Astoria Downtown Historic District Association is thriving, thanks in large part to having had a full-time coordinator for the past year a…

Hokies Helping Hokies 3/21 Guest Speaker: John Provo, VT Ec Dev

From the Richmond Chapter of the Virginia Tech Alumni Association:

"This months Hokies Helping Hokies has the great opportunity to have John Provo, VT's Director of Economic Development, as our speaker this month.

John develops and manages projects with communities, agencies, and companies around Virginia, on a range of topics. He has developed partnerships between Virginia Tech and entities in the public, private and non-profit sectors to address economic development needs of communities around the Commonwealth. Recent accomplishments include securing more than $10 million in three large federal grants for western Virginia in green jobs and health IT training and curricular development and engineering technical assistance for transportation manufacturing equipment firms.

Date, location and time
3/21 at the VT Richmond Center, Parham & Mayland Roads, starting at 7:15AM "

Summer Graduate Assistant Opening

The Metropolitan Institute has an immediate opening for graduate students to work a minimum of 10 and up to 30 hours per week as a Graduate Research Assistant (GRA) for the summer of 2012 (May 16 to August 15). These positions will report to the Director, and/or, the Associate Director of the Metropolitan Institute and will work on a number of ongoing projects within the center. Tasks will include writing research briefs and case studies, doing outreach and communications such as updating research blogs, assisting with the preparation of grants, and general support on research projects.

Please review the complete description and contact the Operations Manager for more information.

Intelligent Transportation Society of Virginia Call for Papers

From ITSVA:

"ITSVA Announces its 18th Annual Conference

This year featuring a student paper contest!

The contest is open to students in any of Virginia’s colleges or universities. Papers should follow the Transportation Research Board guidelines for length (maximum 7,500 words; tables and figures count as 250 words each) and must focus on topics relating to Intelligent Transportation, including but not limited to congestion and incident management, traveler information, data collection and management, and technologies to support these activities.

Cash prizes will be awarded to the top three submissions (top prize $100!). In addition, authors of the winning papers will be invited to attend the opening session of the ITSVA Annual Conference on Thursday, April 19, 2012 and showcase their papers through a display in the Exhibit Hall. Winners also receive a one-year membership in ITSVA.

This is a great opportunity to network with professionals in the ITS community!

Submit your papers to Cathy McGhee, ITSVA Conference Planning Committee Chair,
at Cathy.McGhee@vdot.virginia.gov by March 23rd, 2012.
Questions about the contest can also be directed to Cathy.

Intelligent Transportation Society of Virginia
250 West Main Street, Suite 100
Charlottesville, VA 22902
(434) 977-3716 • www.itsva.org "

March 14 Research in Progress (RIP) Lunch on Bicycle Commuting in the WDC Region

Dear All,

Please join us at 12pm for the Research in Progress (RIP) Lunchtime discussion on Wednesday, March 14^th, 2012!

Come out, have lunch, and learn about:

"Bicycle Commuting in the Washington, DC Region: The Role of Bike Parking, Cyclist Showers, and Free Car Parking at Work"

The presentation will cover trends in cycling in the Washington, DC region and the determinants of bicycle commuting in the DC area (with a focus on the role of cyclist showers, bike parking, free car parking, and employer provided  transit commuter benefits)

-Ralph Buehler

Assistant Professor

Urban Affairs & Planning

When: Wednesday, 14th March 2012

Venue: 3rd Floor Library, 1021 Prince Street

Time: 12PM

Looking forward to seeing all of you!!

April 13 and 14 Roanoke Parklet Experiment

From MURP Alumna Josephine Arbaugh:

"Through its Architecture Week, the American Institute of Architects seeks to bring the building profession and the public together to celebrate and explore architecture . This year, AIA’s Blue Ridge Chapter, in partnership with Downtown Roanoke Inc. (DRI),  aims to promote social interaction and creativity through art, public architecture, and urban design by hosting the Roanoke Parklet Experiment. This 2 day event invites students, professionals, residents, and businesses to work together to enhance the human ecology of Downtown Roanoke by designing and transforming a parking space into a public space....

For more information please email RoanokeParklet@gmail.com"

Roanoke Parklet Experiment

April 13 and 14, 2012

http://parklet.aiablueridge.com

March 13 OECD Compact City Seminar

From CNU:

"Seminar Sponsored by the World Bank

Free and open to the public

OECD Compact City Seminar
Policies: A Comparative Assessment

Tuesday, March 13, 2012
10:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Room I 2-250 / I Building (1850 I Street, N.W., Washington, DC)
World Bank
External participants must request a Visitor's Pass. Please contact Adelaide Barra.

This seminar will discuss OECD’s new report, Compact City Policies: A Comparative Assessment. The report examines the concept of the compact city and the implication of the current urban context for compact city policies. It explores their potential outcomes, particularly in terms of how they can contribute to Green Growth, and looks at developing indicators to monitor compact cities and track policy performance. It reviews compact city policies currently being implemented across the OECD in relation to the pursuit of Green Growth objectives and provides ideas to achieve better outcomes. And it assesses the key governance challenges faced by decision-makers as they seek to implement practical compact city strategies. This report is thus intended as “food for thought” for national, sub-national and municipal governments as they seek to address their economic and environmental challenges through the development and implementation of spatial strategies in pursuit of Green Growth objectives. It also illustrates best practices (which present key elements of successful compact city policies) based on empirical evidence that can be shared across OECD member countries.

This report also provides good insight for policy makers, planners, academia and donor agencies working on the challenge of sustainable urban development in developing countries. For this reason, the World Bank’s Eco2 Team contributed to the preparation of the report by providing comments and direct input for some of its content.

In addition to representatives from OECD, we will be joined by the Coalition for Smarter Growth, which is actively promoting a smart growth movement in the Washington Metropolitan Region, to share their experiences.

On this occasion, the World Bank will also launch the Eco2 Cities Guide, the implementation Guide for the Eco2 Ecological Cities as Economic Cities, which was published in 2010.

Agenda
Welcome and Opening Speech
Abha Joshi-Ghani, Sector Manager, FEUUR, Urban Development and Local Government Unit
Compact City Policies: OECD’s Findings and Recommendations
Tadashi Matsumoto, Senior Policy Analyst, Regional Policies for Sustainable Development Division, OECD
Energy, Transport and Sustainable Urban Form: Outline of OECD’s Upcoming Project
Yasushi Yoshida, Division Head, Regional Policies for Sustainable Development Division, OECD
Smarter Growth Movements in the Washington Metropolitan Area
Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director, Coalition for Smarter Growth
Compact Urban Design: Perspective from Cities in Developing Countries
Hiroaki Suzuki, Lead Urban Specialist and Eco2 Team Leader, FEUUR, Urban Development and Local Government Unit

External participants must request a Visitor's Pass. Please contact Adelaide Barra."

Faculty Fellow Showcase: Ralph Hall

UAP's Ralph Hall in Senegal

New Profile on UAP's Ralph Hall from Virginia Tech's Metropolitan Institute:

"Faculty Fellow Ralph Hall, assistant professor in the Urban Affairs and Planning program in the School of Public and International Affairs, explores the transdisciplinary approach to solving sustainability problems and its applications in many corners of the world."  Read more

Leveraging the Wisdom of Crowds through Participatory Platforms in Planetizen

We're glad to share this news from CPAP's Kevin DeSouza:

Kevin DeSouza, Ph.D.

"My article on Leveraging the Wisdom of Crowds through Participatory Platforms was published on Planetizen.  The future of design and planning is certain to be around participatory platforms, designers and planners should embrace these platforms and leverage their potential towards designing smart(er) cities through open, inclusive, and collaborative approaches. Planners need to learn how to orchestrate participation on these platforms so as to arrive at plans that are representative of community needs and within scope, budget, and resource constraints. Failure to achieve this will result in plans that fall prey to the foolishness or the rowdiness of crowds. I outline five simple guidelines to consider. To read more, click here - LINK"

National Capital Region Open House

Join us for food and fun and learn more about Virginia Tech Continuing and Professional Education. Wear your Hokie attire! Those who RSVP will be entered in a door prize drawing. Refreshments provided by the Green Turtle.

Thursday, March 22, 2012 | 4:30 - 6:30 PM

Virginia Tech Research Center - Arlington
900 North Glebe Road, Arlington, VA

March 8 Event: Export Nation 2012 How U.S. Metros Are Driving National Growth

From Brookings and the Next American City:

"Thursday, March 8, 2012, 9:30 am — 12:30 pm
The Brookings Institution, Falk Auditorium, 1775 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC

To RSVP for this event, please call the Office of Communications at 202.797.6105 or click here.

Amid a sluggish economic recovery, a growing number of U.S. business, civic and economic leaders are calling for the nation to tap into global markets as a destination for exports. To that end, the federal government should establish basic policy supports for export-driven growth while capitalizing on the role and assets of metropolitan areas as the key engines of state and national exporting.

On March 8, the Metropolitan Policy Program at Brookings will release “Export Nation 2012,” which analyzes the evolution of the export landscape across the country and the changes in the export sector of the largest 100 U.S. metropolitan areas. The report provides a series of policy recommendations on how to better connect the national export agenda with the Metropolitan Export Initiative, a ground-up collaborative effort to help regional civic, business and political leaders create and implement customized metropolitan export plans in partnership with their states. Bruce Katz, vice president and director of the Metropolitan Policy Program, will present the findings of the report, followed by a panel of business, civic and government leaders involved in helping their metro areas better engage in global trade. The event will conclude with a discussion on how the federal government can create a national platform for export growth while empowering the growth of exports from the ground up.

After each panel, participants will take audience questions. Participants may join the discussion on Twitter using the hashtag #ExportNation.

Welcoming Remarks
Antoine van Agtmael
Trustee, The Brookings Institution
Chairman and Co-CIO, Ashmore EMM, LLC

Presentation
Bruce Katz
Vice President and Co-Director, Metropolitan Policy Program
The Brookings Institution

Panel Discussion
Moderator: Mary Jordan
Editor
Washington Post Live

The Honorable Sam Adams
Mayor
City of Portland, Oregon

Alan Fink
Vice President - International
ConMed Corporation

Katie Clark
Executive Director
Minnesota Trade Office

Carlos Valderrama
Senior Vice President for Global Initiatives
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce

Dialogue: The Federal Role
Moderator: Amy Liu
Senior Fellow and Co-Director, Metropolitan Policy Program
The Brookings Institution

Fred Hochberg
President and Chairman
Export-Import Bank

Karen Mills
Administrator
Small Business Administration"

America’s New Swing Region

The Mountain West—Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah—has become the new swing region in American politics. All signs point to these states, especially Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico, being crucial in the 2012 election. Unfortunately, the rise of this region has been underreported in the media, and many political observers have only the most superficial understanding of the profound economic, political, and social changes that continue to reshape the Mountain West. America’s New Swing Region is the remedy.

Contents:

1. Introduction and Overview
2. America’s New Swing Region: The Political Demography and Geography of the Mountain West
3. Metropolitan Voting Patterns in the Mountain West: The New and Old Political Heartlands
4. Hispanics, Race, and the Changing Political Landscape of the United States Mountain West
5. The Political Attitudes of the Millennial Generation in the Mountain West
6. The Mountain West Today: A Regional Survey
7. Reapportionment and Redistricting in the Mountain West

Contributors include:

• Karlyn Bowman, American Enterprise Institute;
• David Damore, University of Nevada–Las Vegas (UNLV);
• William Frey, Brookings Institution;
• Scott Keeter, Pew Research Center;
• Robert E. Lang, Brookings, UNLV, and the Lincy Institute;
• Tom Sanchez, Virginia Tech University; and
• Ruy Teixeira, Century Foundation and the Center for American Progress.

Notre Dame Professor to Share Vision for Urban Architecture

From Patrick Henry College:
"Cities are best understood as cooperative human artifacts made over time, and the primary purpose of a good city is to promote human flourishing, according to Dr. Philip Bess, Director of Graduate Students and Professor of Architecture at the University of Notre Dame. This Friday at 7:00 p.m., Professor Bess comes to Patrick Henry College to present a compelling vision for architecture in a public lecture entitled, "Traditional Urbanism and Human Flourishing."

This lecture will take place on Friday, March 2, at PHC's Barbara Hodel Center Coffeehouse, and will be webcast live at 7 p.m. ET. It is hosted by the Alexis de Tocqueville Society of Patrick Henry College and is co-sponsored by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. We invite our friends and supporters across the country to join us for this special event. Dr. Bess is the author of Inland Architecture: Subterranean Essays on Moral Order and Formal Order in Chicago and Till We Have Built Jerusalem: Architecture, Urbanism, and the Sacred. To watch our live webcast, go to the PHC webcast page Friday, March 2, at 7:00 p.m. ET. Read more."