CU Boulder has been awarded $3 million from the National Science Foundation to use towards a new research facility called CONVERGE. Dr. Lori Peek, a Sociology Professor at the university, will lead the project and serve as the principal investigator for the facility. To learn more about this new addition to CU’s campus, you can read about it here. The DailyCamera has also published an article on CONVERGE and the efforts Lori Peek and her team are making to mitigate the effects of natural disasters. The article can be found here.

CONVERGE is focused on reducing the harm natural disasters bring upon communities. Specifically, the program intends on quickly gathering data from hazard stricken areas in hopes of collecting every bit of information possible. “We go into the field quickly and travel to places where the entire community has been badly disrupted. These are difficult situations and unique ethical, legal and cultural guidance may be needed.” Peek says of the duties the CONVERGE team is responsible for after a natural hazard strikes. By bringing together engineers, social scientists, and natural scientists to collect and analyze the data from impacted areas, Peek says the facility hopes to “reduce the harm and suffering these disasters bring about.”

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Article summary written by Sierra Gonzalez-Speegle, CU Boulder Sophomore, Strategic Communications major. 

Congratulations to Rashel Gandhi-Besbes for graduating summa cum laude in Anthropology.  Her Honor's Program advisor was IBS Environment and Society Program Director Terry McCabe.  Rashel's thesis is titled “The Enemies of Conservation: Balancing Humans and Wildlife Within and Surrounding Protected Areas in Tanzania.”  Please read the full article posted in the University of Colorado – Boulder's Arts and Sciences Magazine.  Below are some highlights.  

Gandhi-Besbes launched her research after talking with her advisor, anthropology Professor J. Terrence McCabe, about why conservation efforts are failing. “He helped me turn a deep concern for the planet and all its species into a practical research question,” she told fellow Honors Program graduates.

In her prepared remarks to fellow honors graduates, Gandhi-Besbes said that being in the College of Arts and Sciences “has taught us how to tell a story and to challenge others to do the same.’ 

…

“The world is giving us one of the biggest chances in history to make a difference. Change is coming, and we’re at the frontlines. So what I want to leave you with today is to remember the importance of passion. To remember the importance of collaboration. And to remember your influence on the world around you.”

The National Science Foundation recently created CONVERGE – a $3 million research center hosted here at CU-Boulder, specifically with Dr. Lori Peek as the principal investigator on the project. Please read all about this exciting project here.  

The center is dedicated to bringing together engineering, social sciences, and interdisciplinary teams to reduce hazards losses and improve social wellbeing. Peek said the goal of risk reduction and enhanced resilience is central to the NHERI mission, and the CONVERGE center will help advance that through its focus on research collaboration and coordination.
 
“Convergence science is about bringing together diverse people, perspectives, and skillsets to solve the world’s toughest challenges,” Peek said. “CONVERGE will allow us to link various research communities, to develop and share best practices for the ethical conduct of research, and to promote social science, engineering, and interdisciplinary natural hazards research to reduce vulnerability.”

Nnenia Campbell (Ph.D., Research Associate with the Natural Hazards Center) and Brandi Gilbert (Ph.D., Research Associate with the Urban Institute) wrote a post on the Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) blog Why Social Science about what social science research related to children and older adults has taught us about building community resilience and enhancing recovery after disasters. Please read the full article here, but enjoy several highlights below.  

We are dedicated to using social science to improve disaster recovery for those on the margins of society—in particular on the unique needs of children and older adults in times of crisis. Our past work has shed light on how age influences issues of both vulnerability and agency. Uplifting lessons learned is especially important as we continue to face more extreme weather events and a changing climate. 

By highlighting realities that run contrary to commonly held assumptions, the systematic study of disaster outcomes at both ends of the age spectrum points to the value of social science research for evidence-based decision-making. The insights that scientists provide are only as good as the questions that they ask.

Post-Doctoral Research Position

Demography and Genetics

University of Colorado at Boulder

The Institute of Behavioral Science and the Institute for Behavioral Genetics have a developed an innovative training program at the intersection of Demography and Genetics research that is funded by a T32 training grant from NIA (T32AG052371). We are currently searching for a post-doctoral position that will begin September 1, 2019. The candidate will work with faculty in the IBS/IBG training program at the intersection of demographic and genetic research and will train in methods and substance in both areas. It is a one-year position at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

The candidate will participate in weekly research meetings, participate in graduate level training in demography and statistical genetics, attend and present at the annual meetings of the Population Association of America and the Behavior Genetics Association, and contribute to new and ongoing projects one or both research institutes. Candidates must have received, as of the beginning date of the appointment, a Ph.D., M.D. or comparable doctoral degree from an accredited domestic or foreign institution. Documentation by an authorized official of the degree-granting institution certifying all degree requirements have been met prior to the beginning date of training is acceptable. The University of Colorado is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, race, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or status as a protected veteran. Due to restrictions on the grant, we are only able to accept applications from U.S. Citizens and those with permanent residency. 

Please submit the following to Jessica LaRue (Jessica.LaRue@Colorado.EDU) as one complete .pdf file with your last name_first name.pdf as the name of the document (e.g., doe_john.pdf) :

1. Cover letter: please provide a brief description of your research interests and training in genetics or demography or both.

2. List of references (name and email is sufficient).

3. CV

Review of application is ongoing until the position is filled. Thus, we encourage interested applicants to submit their materials as soon as possible. 

Colleen Reid, an Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, has been selected as a JPB Environmental Health (EH) Fellow by Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Funded by the JPB Foundation the JPB EH Fellowship Program supports a new generation of Environmental Health scholars who are committed to developing solutions and supporting policy changes that address environmental, social, and economic health disparities in the United States.  JPB EH Fellows are engaged in rigorous interdisciplinary research on the social and physical determinants of environmental health disparities in vulnerable communities. 

Through a competitive selection process, 15 new Fellowships (11 to Junior Faculty and 4 to Federal Agency Research Scientists) were awarded on October 1, 2018.  Over a three-year period, Fellows will receive up to $240,000, mentoring, and training in methods, skills, new technologies, leadership and communications.

Dr. Reid is an assistant professor in the Geography Department at the University of Colorado, Boulder and a Faculty Affiliate of the Institute for Behavioral Sciences. Her research focuses on the interaction of environmental and social exposures on population health with a particular focus on the health impacts of exposures influenced by global climatic changes and society’s responses to those changes.

The Natural Hazards Center has Postdoctoral Position open for applicants.  Please see the brief job description below, and click here for qualifications, expectations, and the application process. Applications are due November 5, 2018. The position can begin as early as January 1, 2019.  

Position Description

The Natural Hazards Center in the Institute of Behavioral Science at the University of Colorado Boulder seeks a postdoctoral research associate for a full-time, 12-month position, with benefits, beginning as early as January 1, 2019. The initial appointment will be for one year, with the possibility of renewal for a second year, contingent on funding availability and satisfactory performance.

The person who is hired for this position will assist in developing mental health, vulnerable populations, and other training components associated with the Social Science Extreme Events Research (SSEER) and Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Extreme Events Research (ISEEER) platforms. SSEER and ISEEER—which are part of the newly established National Science Foundation CONVERGE facility at the Natural Hazards Center—are designed to advance reconnaissance research and disaster science to benefit the broader hazards and disaster field. The ultimate vision for this work is to prepare individual researchers and interdisciplinary teams to carry out extreme events research that is coordinated, comprehensive, coherent, ethically grounded, and scientifically rigorous.

The postdoctoral research associate will work under the direct supervision of Professor Lori Peek, who is director of the Natural Hazards Center and principal investigator for the NSF CONVERGE project.

Dr. Lori Peek, director, and Jennifer Tobin, of the Natural Hazards Center were highlighted in a recent Daily Camera article regarding disaster preparedness and K-12 schools.  

Local schools had their preparedness for natural disasters tested with the 2013 floods and can offer lessons in responding, especially during the recovery phase.

In a collaboration with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, CU's Natural Hazards Center is highlighting the risks posed to K-12 schools by a variety of potential disasters – and Lyons schools' flood response was highlighted as an example of best practice.

University of Colorado Boulder sociology professor Lori Peek was one of the authors of the free FEMA guide "Safer, Stronger, Smarter: A Guide to Improving School Natural Hazard Safety."

The original Daily Camera article can be found here and was written by staff writer Amy Bounds.  CU students, faculty, and staff can access it via Norlin's online database here.  

Dr. Larry Hedges, member of the Blueprints Advisory Board with CSPV, won the Yidan Prize, the largest award in education. The prestigious award includes a project fund of almost $2 million in addition to an equivalent cash prize. Congratulations to Dr. Hedges!

Professor Larry HEDGES is one of the most influential applied statisticians in the world. His work in educational policy allows policymakers, educators and the general public to see the evidence for “what works” in the field of education, and makes it possible to take a scientific approach to improving education for future generations.

Please visit https://yidanprize.org for more information about the Yidan Prize and its impact on education. 

Through a series of initiatives, the prize aims to establish a platform for the global community to engage in conversation around education and to play a role in education philanthropy.

Please visit https://www.ipr.northwestern.edu/faculty-experts/fellows/hedges.html to learn more about Dr. Larry Hedges.