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Pan American Advanced Studies Institute Program
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Deadline: January 16, 2010 Institute for Integration of Research on Climate Change and Hazards in the Americas Up to 50 graduate students and post-doctoral scholars from the US and Latin America will be supported to participate in a two-week long Institute for Integration of Research on Climate Change and Hazards in the Americas in Panama City, Panama, June 14-25, 2010. The event, co-organized by the Association of American Geographers (AAG), the PanAmerican Institute for Geography and History (PAIGH) of the Organization of American States, the US Geological Survey (USGS), the National Communication Association (NCA), and the United Nations Environment Programme Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (UNEP), will take place in collaboration with the Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá and will be led by an expert interdisciplinary team of 12 lecturers from the US, Panama, Chile, Brazil, and Mexico. Demonstrations of NASA’s SERVIR Program (Regional Visualization and Monitoring System for Mesoamerica) and content contributions from USAID’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance are planned. Funding for the institute comes from the US National Science Foundation’s Pan American Advanced Studies Institute Program (NSF PASI). Rationale: With the anticipated impacts of climate change increasing the likelihood and extremity of hazards, coupled with the largely unpredictable ways in which local communities may experience new or different kinds of events, the importance of supporting integration at the hemispheric scale is critical. For these reasons, the two-week advanced institute seeks to encourage joint progress from data to knowledge to action by consolidating advanced research, synergizing international geospatial collaboration around links between climate change & hazards, and fostering a region-wide community of scholars & practitioners. The desired result of this PASI is a clear roadmap and collaborative mechanism for developing and sharing the knowledge necessary for responding to climate change and hazards in the Americas in an integrative way, using geographic tools and methods as a research and communication framework. Objectives of the institute are 1) to identify, engage, and integrate a new generation of scholars and practitioners with on-going activities of major organizations around the relationship between climate change and hazards; 2) to interrelate advanced knowledge domains around links between climate change and hazards in the region using integrative capacities of geographic technologies; and 3) to elaborate a collaborative research and educational agenda that communicates across disciplines and sectors. The institute will offer lectures, demonstrations, technical training, group discussions, and work sessions at the advanced graduate and post-doctoral level and will produce a research agenda, set of white papers, and an online knowledge environment to structure collaboration among participants and to serve as a repository for documents and ideas resulting from the effort. Both the PASI’s structure and the high-caliber lecturers themselves will enable a strong mentoring and peer-support model that increases the level and quality of learning. Graduate students, post doctoral students, or early career scientists within 10 years of receiving the PhD who are citizens of and residents in any country in Latin America may apply as Regional Participants. Criteria for Selection: Applicants will be selected by a committee of experts from the organizing institutions for their potential contribution to the institute and potential to catalyze significant international collaboration beyond the institute. When submissions are of approximately equal merit, preference will be given to minority and female scholars. Up to 25 participants from each category, U.S. and Regional, of equal number and broad geographic distribution will be invited to participate.Those selected to participate must agree in writing to comply with NSF guidelines, to engage in the institute event presentations, learning activities, and contribute to the elaboration of the knowledge environment as a condition of acceptance. Selected participants must attend the full two week institute in Panama City, Panama, scheduled for June 14 – 25, 2010. They will receive airfare, lodging, local transportation to institute events, training materials, breakfast and lunch paid for directly by the program for the dates of the PASI. Additional expenses such as evening meals, visa fees, optional additional tours, or personal items are not covered by the program. Applications: To apply, submit the completed application form by the deadline on January 16, 2010 to Dr. Patricia Solís at psolis@aag.org. Digital submissions are required. When you complete the form, choose to “save as” a new file with your last name in front of the filename, such as “LASTNAME_AAG_PASI _Application.pdf”. Then send the file as an email attachment to psolis@aag.org with “AAG PASI Application” as the subject line in order to ensure swift processing and avoid delays due to misdelivery or spam filtering. Acknowledgement of receipt of applications is not automated but will be returned within approximately 2-3 business days. Applicants will be notified of the status of their submission by March 1, 2010.
ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
HOST VENUE Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá (UTP) www.utp.ac.pa LECTURERS
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