Social-Ecological Systems Research

in the Delaware EPSCoR RII-2

Alaska NSF EPSCoR Social-Ecological Systems Workshop

May 10-13, 2009

Jurisdiction: Delaware

Names of Project Director and (if different) person completing the survey:

Stephen Borleske, University of Delaware, Delaware Biotechnology Institute, 15 Innovation Way, Newark, DE 19711. ; 302-831-3430

Contact information for person qualified to answer questions related to the survey:

Steve Fifield, University of Delaware, Education Research and Development Center, 109 Pearson Hall, Newark, DE 19716. ; 302-831-4437

(Fifield is attending the SES workshop)

Please describe SES research that is currently taking place in your jurisdiction.

We do not currently have SES research underway, but we are developing partnerships and building on our research in environmental science, ethics and public policy, and the social dynamics of cross-disciplinary research to catalyze SES research on sea level rise in the mid-Atlantic region.

Research under the Delaware EPSCoR RII-2 is focused on environmental research themes, including particle transport and release, metal-microbe-carbon interactions, and environmental observation and sensing. Research in these areas is relevant to environmental issues with social and economic dimensions, such as air and water quality, preserving coastal ecosystems and promoting brownfield redevelopment. This research involves interdisciplinary collaboration among biologists, chemists, engineers, soil scientists, geoscientists, ethicists, social scientists and policy analysts.

Two areas of research in the humanities and social sciences are important steps toward the fuller integration of research specialties in SES research. First, the Delaware EPSCoR Science, Ethics and Public Policy (SEPP) program ( combines ethics and public policy inquiry with scientific research, undergraduate and graduate education, private sector innovation, and government policy-making. Ethics education for future scientists, energy and environment, and nanotechnology are among the key topics in SEPP. Looking toward SES research, the study of and policy responses to sea level rise need to incorporate thoughtful ethical analyses. Second, an NSF funded study of the social dynamics of cross-disciplinary research collaboration is using ethnography and social network analysis to explore how scientists work with each other across disciplines. This research may inform ways to nurture cross-disciplinary communities for SES research. More broadly, studying the dynamics of cross-disciplinary research interactions offers insights about fostering adaptive responses to complex social-ecological events like sea level rise.

What are the SES areas of research that your state may be interested in moving toward or enhancing at this time?

Delaware EPSCoR has recently joined with the state of Delaware in a 5-year effort to develop a statewide Sea Level Rise Adaptation Plan. Because of Delaware’s proximity to the coast and coastal plain, the state is highly susceptible to rising sea levels. No part of the state is more than 8 miles from tidal waters and Delaware’s coast has played a significant role in the history, culture, and economy of the state. Sea level rise has the potential to significantly impactDelaware’s economy, coastal resources andcommunities over the next several decades. As a resultof rising sea levels, low lying coastal areas could beinundated, storm events could cause more severeflooding and coastal erosion, and areas that werepreviously not flood prone could experience flooding.Rising sea levels can also contribute to salt watercontamination of groundwater and increase levels ofsalt in our waterways. A SeaLevel Rise Adaptation Plan is being developed to better evaluate and, when needed, address these impacts. Thisstatewide plan will include an analysis of the issuesaffecting Delaware and will provide recommendationsto ensure that Delaware pro-actively plans for theseeffects.

Delaware EPSCoR will be a partner in this process to bring investigators in the natural and social sciences and humanities together with policy-makers, the business community and the public to address issues needed to thoughtfully respond to sea level rise. Potential SES research topics include the expected nature and extent of sea level rise in Delaware; ecological and social effects; public policy responses; and the economic, social and ecological costs of sea level rise and responses to it.

What are the SES areas of research that your state may be interested in pursuing in the future?

Our focus at this time is to develop SES research around sea level rise. Future topics might include the interactions of ecosystem and human health.

Is there ongoing collaboration with other jurisdictions or neighboring states?

We plan to pursue partnerships by contacting other coastal states to learn about their research and policy activities regarding sea level rise.

Please list funding sources (including EPSCoR and non-EPSCoR) for this SES research.

1. NSF Delaware EPSCoR RII-2 (EPS-0814251)

2. Partnering with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, with some funding from NOAA.

3. We plan to seek NSF funding under the SBE and GEO initiative in Environment, Society and the Economy (

4. We are looking for other funding opportunities and would appreciate any recommendations on upcoming opportunities.

Does your jurisdiction have specific goals for SES research as defined by your State Science and Technology Plan or other statewide initiative?

Although Delaware's Science and Technology Plan does not define specific goals for SES research, one of its six strategic initiatives is to "achieve a sustainable environment while ensuring a prosperous economy." We believe that SES research can advance this S&T initiative by developing approaches in which environmental and economic well-being are interdependent and complementary, rather than zero-sum trade-offs that are necessarily in conflict.

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