Serving Moscow
As Moscow continues to grow, it is becoming increasingly important to develop a framework for conservation planning. Determining just how conservation-minded the people of Moscow really are is the goal of a current service learning project led professors Nick Sanyal and Ed Krumpe. Their students collaboratively are examining three important aspects of the Moscow community: the ecological forces at work in the landscape, the social relationships within the community and the relationships between the community and the surrounding landscape.
"Service-learning gives students the opportunity to apply concepts they are learning in the classroom to real-life situations," said Sanyal. "By engaging in such a project in Moscow, we will address a real community need."
The students are applying their developing knowledge of green infrastructure, social and ecological principles, and assessing the needs for conservation in Moscow. Green infrastructure is a concept that highlights the importance of the natural environment in decisions about land use planning.
Earlier this fall, students went on field trips and interviewed a wide variety of community members and elected officials to uncover their perceptions, definitions and conservation habits at work and in their daily living. Students also inquired about barriers to and incentives for practicing conservation.
Student teams conducted a broad, community level assessment of the specific types, extents and qualities of the vegetation, wildlife, and other natural resources of the community to determine the role that each plays in supporting conservation.
“An assessment of the current condition of these resources will reveal which aspects of the community are at risk and how damage to them might adversely impact the sustainability of the region,” said Sanyal.
Students ultimately will examine behavioral, demographic, historical, economic and other human/social data to identify development patterns and trends, and determine how these factors are shaping the community.
“Our end goal is to develop a fuller understanding of the relationships between community, sustainability, conservation and heritage,” Sanyal commented.
The Moscow project is a continuation of a service-learning project series developed by alumnus Dana Coombs and Sanyal in 2007 that empowered the community of Dayton, Wash., to make decisions about the town’s development over the next 20 years.
"Service-learning gives students the opportunity to apply concepts they are learning in the classroom to real-life situations," said Sanyal. "By engaging in such a project in Moscow, we will address a real community need."
The students are applying their developing knowledge of green infrastructure, social and ecological principles, and assessing the needs for conservation in Moscow. Green infrastructure is a concept that highlights the importance of the natural environment in decisions about land use planning.
Earlier this fall, students went on field trips and interviewed a wide variety of community members and elected officials to uncover their perceptions, definitions and conservation habits at work and in their daily living. Students also inquired about barriers to and incentives for practicing conservation.
Student teams conducted a broad, community level assessment of the specific types, extents and qualities of the vegetation, wildlife, and other natural resources of the community to determine the role that each plays in supporting conservation.
“An assessment of the current condition of these resources will reveal which aspects of the community are at risk and how damage to them might adversely impact the sustainability of the region,” said Sanyal.
Students ultimately will examine behavioral, demographic, historical, economic and other human/social data to identify development patterns and trends, and determine how these factors are shaping the community.
“Our end goal is to develop a fuller understanding of the relationships between community, sustainability, conservation and heritage,” Sanyal commented.
The Moscow project is a continuation of a service-learning project series developed by alumnus Dana Coombs and Sanyal in 2007 that empowered the community of Dayton, Wash., to make decisions about the town’s development over the next 20 years.
