Many of our most tenacious challenges in energy, food and water are constrained by the mismatch between messy real world interactions and siloed disciplinary approaches. However, talking about a science of integration and actually doing it requires precision in concepts, methodologies and implementation.

In this lecture, Lilian Alessa, Ph.D. will offer some examples of the leading edges of integrative science and explore the possibilities for application through regional and national research leadership navigating the new resilient integrated energy landscape. Dr. Alessa is President’s Professor and director of the Center for Resilient Communities at the University of Idaho. She conducts extensive research on human adaptation to environmental change, funded by the National Science Foundation and the Department of Homeland Security, including Community Based Observing Systems and Networks (CBONS) for improved situational awareness and integrated food, energy and water projects.

Dr. Alessa’s expertise is in social-ecological and technological systems (SETS) science and the development of highly integrated approaches to better understanding complex environmental processes, particularly through the incorporation of place-based knowledge.

A reception will follow the lecture at 3:30 p.m. If you have any questions, please contact Sandy Watson at sfwatson@wsu.edu.

Meet Dr. Alessa
Prior to joining University of Idaho, Dr. Alessa was the Director of the Alaska Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) at the University of Alaska. She is the Community Based Observing Networks and Systems (CBONS) Program Lead and International Liaison for the Arctic Domain Awareness Center (ADAC), a Department of Homeland Security Center of Excellence.

Trained as both a physical and social scientist she pioneered human sensor networks (CBONS) and developed the only Arctic freshwater security assessment index. At the U of Idaho she established the Center for Resilient Communities (CRC), a multi-Institutional partnership focused on helping communities thrive in rapidly changing environments. She received her PhDs from the University of British Columbia and sits on several national advisory committees including the National Ecological Observing Network (NEON). She is a co-author of the NSF Decadal Vision “America’s Future: Environmental Research and Education for a Thriving Century http://www.nsf.gov/geo/ere/ereweb/ac-ere/ac-ere_thriving_century.pdf.

During the U.S. Chairmanship of the Arctic Council, Dr. Alessa serves as Project Lead for Arctic freshwater security assessments and chairs the Arctic Adaptation Exchange Portal (AAEP), arcticadaptationexchange.com. Her team’s other work includes developing innovative training programs to off-set technology induced vulnerabilities in combat forces, as well as providing guidelines on designing and securing resilient landscapes using social, ecological and technological systems science.