The LTER Network Office: An Overview of Recent Developments Robert B. Waide Executive Director

10 Year Review20 Year Review 30 Year Review ASM KansasOregon-WashingtonNew Mexico ASM DEB SBE, EHR OPP GEO-OCE

Steps Taken – Assessment and Evaluation LTER Network annual review of LNO

1.Site Science 2.Site Synthesis 3.Cross-site/Extra Site Synthesis 4.Network Synthesis 5.Cross-network Synthesis LTER Synthesis Stages

Site Science Site Synthesis Cross-site/Extra Site Synthesis Network Synthesis Cross-network Synthesis LTER Synthesis Stages

Support  Grow the pot –Increase available funds in LNO by fund-raising, re-allocation, and economies  Use existing monies more effectively –Smaller awards, but more of them  Address communication challenges innovatively  Continue conversations with NCEAS  Try to score big –Foundations, other NSF programs, other agencies

Facilitate  Expand use of videoconferencing technology  Facilitate use of other interaction technologies like collaboration portals and wiki pages  Help define and implement the steps leading to effective collaboration  Help plan and build relevant databases  Use the training lab  Facilitate proposals focusing on synthesis

Enhance  With more resources, add salary and eventually post-docs to working groups  Provide sufficient funds for multiple meetings  Encourage continued strategic planning  Help achieve the goals of the Decadal Plan  Evaluate large-scale solutions (S&T Centers?)

Key Objectives of the Integrated Research Plan  Perform fundamental research that transcends the ecological and social sciences  Conduct research over long time spans to reveal trends and dynamics of important processes  Provide a conceptual framework and theoretical foundations for social-ecological science  Integrate education and research by focusing on environmental literacy and public education  Improve cyberinfrastructure to acquire, deliver, curate, and integrate scientific information

What can the LNO do?  Provide leadership and resources to encourage cross-disciplinary integration  Identify and address technological and socio-cultural challenges that impede progress  Support efforts to add detail to the IRP to make it operational  Adapt to new challenges and responsibilities as the IRP becomes operational

Other LNO reviews UNM reviews  Annual review of Executive Director  Annual review of research faculty  Annual review of staff  Annual review of CREST NSF reviews  Mid-term reviews  Renewal site visits  Annual report to NSF  Oversight by Program Officer Independent reviews  Annual review by the LTER National Advisory Board  10 Year Reviews of LTER

2006 Collaboration Network with SGS

2006 Collaboration Network without SGS no change in layout

2006 Collaboration Network without SGS with reset spring embedding layout

2006 Network layout by PCA

2006 Network without SGS layout by PCA