Conservation Ecology Lab
@ UC Santa Cruz
Our Values
At its core, our lab has values that permeate all aspects of our work, including the research we do, the classes we teach, and the outreach activities we lead and are part of. We strive to have an equitable and inclusive lab, and foster a growth mindset, which includes us continually learning more about how to achieve these goals. Below we describe some of our core values and how our practices might reflect our commitment to them.
Our lab during fieldwork at "Reserva Natural El Encanto" (Huila, Colombia) which offers family-run birdwatching tourism.
Recognize and elevate diversity in science and conservation
Contribute to local capacity building
Our lab recognizes that diverse teams, perspectives, and ways of knowing result in improved scientific and conservation outcomes. We strive to practice our commitment to diversity in science by highlighting existing inequities and crafting paths toward more inclusive and safe scientific spaces.
Some of our work highlights the underrepresentation of women in ornithological history and publications, and the challenges faced by academic mothers and international scholars, for example.
Our research takes us to many places where local communities share their habitat with biodiversity. We recognize the knowledge that those communities hold, aim to learn from them, and are committed to sharing what we learn about their biodiversity with them.
In the Colombia Resurvey project, for example, we have written about our general approach, the overarching goal of doing equitable and inclusive scientific expeditions, and some tools on how to enact that goal.
Apply our research to conservation action
The research we do in our lab is highly applied and often results in conservation actions. We strive to communicate our science in useful ways to a variety of actors, including local communities and conservation practitioners.
Beyond our science, we kindle collaborations that allows us to contribute our scientific expertise with those doing on-the-ground conservation. In our partnership with Fundación Camaná, for example, we work together to apply conservations tools we develop to the study and conservation of the endemic and endangered Cundinamarca Antpitta.
Strive for inclusive and equitable science
We apply the same growth mindset we use in research to our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. We recognize that we have much to learn and change and are committed to continue advancing in these goals.
We aim to contribute for example by highlighting how inclusive and equitable approaches have benefitted neotropical bird conservation, describing the potential of scientific diasporas to biodiversity conservation, and carving guidelines for sustainable and equitable bird-watching tourism.