EDSIN: Environmental Data Science Inclusion Network

Presentation given by Alycia Crall (National Ecological Observatory Network) to set the stage for the 3-day conference on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the environmental data sciences.

Opening plenary presentation given by Dr. Carolyn Finney on April 2, 2019.

American Geophysical Union's Ethics, Diversity, and Inclusion program report for 2019.

With the emergence of online conferencing tools and the flexibility required for effectively working remotely, more and more meetings are being held online. Organizers generally have the goal that everyone who attends their meetings can fully participate and access information. Using a handful of strategies, this goal can be met.

"Project Biodiversify provides ready-to-use examples of research concepts that highlight a diverse set of biologists.We aim to align our research examples with core biology curricula and, at the same time, highlight and humanize researchers as role models for students from many walks of life.  Our database is always growing – so check back often for updates!"

While this article focuses on public health, the discussion of decolonizing data is valuable: Decolonizing data is where "the community itself is the one determining what is the information they want us to gather. Why are we gathering it? Who's interpreting it? And are we interpreting it in a way that truly serves our communities? Decolonizing data is about controlling our own story, and making decisions based on what is best for our people. That hasn't been done in data before, and that's what's shifting and changing."

The “Future of Our Pasts: Engaging Cultural Heritage in Climate Action” reportwas released by ICOMOS on Wednesday 3 July 2019 in Baku, Republic of Azerbaijan at an event held during the 43rd session of the World Heritage Committee. Putting forward a multi-disciplinary approach to cultural heritage, the report is intended for site managers, scientists, researchers, but also to climate activists and policy-makers.

The MathJax Consortium is a joint venture of the American Mathematical Society (AMS) and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) to advance mathematical and scientific content on the web.

Core Goals

The core of the MathJax project is the development of its state-of-the-art, open source, JavaScript platform for display of mathematics. Our key design goals are

• high-quality display of mathematics notation in all browsers
• no special browser setup required
• support for LaTeX, MathML and other equation markup directly in the HTML source.
• an extensible, modular design with a rich API for easy integration into web applications.
• support for accessibility, copy and paste and other rich functionality
• interoperability with other applications and math-aware search.

A workshop held on March 14-16, 2018, in Washington, DC explored the changing opportunities and risks of data management and use across disciplinary domains. The third workshop in a series, participants gathered to examine advisory principles for consideration when developing international research agreements, in the pursuit of highlighting promising practices for sustaining and enabling international research collaborations at the highest ethical level possible. The intent of the workshop was to explore, through an ethical lens, the changing opportunities and risks associated with data management and use across disciplinary domains—all within the context of international research agreements. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop.

Project EDDIE is beginning a new round of teaching material development to help connect large-scale sensor data into undergraduate classrooms. Join the community of authors creating materials that engage students with authentic data to improve quantitative reasoning and develop big-data skills.

The Smithsonian Institution Data Science Lab (datascience.si.edu) housed within the Office of the Chief Information Officer (SI-OCIO) in Washington, DC, is seeking two postdoctoral fellows to conduct independent research and digital humanities scholarship in collaboration with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative.

The Data Science Lab was recently formed in response to the dramatic increase in all forms of digital data across the Smithsonian (19 museums, 9 research centers, and a zoo). We seek to build collaborations both across Smithsonian units, as well as universities and other institutions. Members of our group work on a variety of data-intensive research topics, including biodiversity genomics and machine learning applications of digitized museum collections.

Please see https://datascience.si.edu/digital-humanities-postdoctoral-fellowships for details, and email (SI-DataScience@si.edu) or tweet (@SIDataScience) with questions!

The Earth Lab Earth Analytics Education Initiative at the University of Colorado -- Boulder is building an innovative program that provides core in-market demand technical skills at the intersection of Earth and data science to undergraduate, graduate and professional students. The program includes formal courses, workshops, career development events with industry partners, paid undergraduate internships, an open online learning portal with global reach, and a professional certificate in Earth data analytics, one of the first of its kind in the country. We are committed to expanding the reach of Earth data science education for students across varying academic, professional, socio-economic and geographic dimensions to ensure broad accessibility to novel curriculum. All courses are offered through both online and traditional options, allowing students to participate in-person, online in real-time, or asynchronously by reviewing materials at their own pace. 

About the RAY Fellowship

Inspired by efforts to increase racial diversity in conservation, the Roger Arliner Young (RAY) Conservation Diversity Fellowship aims to increase and facilitate conservation-related career pathways for emerging leaders of color. The RAY Fellowship is a paid fellowship designed to equip recent college graduates with the tools, experiences, support, and community they need to become leaders in the conservation sector—one that, in our visions of the future, fully represents, includes, and is lead by the diverse communities, perspectives, and experiences of the United States.

The RAY Fellowship provides first-time career access opportunities for recent college graduates who do not have previous professional experience or a graduate degree. RAY Fellows are placed within one of our Member Organizations for a year-long paid fellowship position, with the resources and support to develop experiences that will launch them onto a path of career growth in conservation. Fellows work with mentors, grow their networks, and forge lasting relationships with their cohort of Fellows. RAY Fellowship positions are full-time paid positions with competitive entry-level salaries plus benefits. Fellows will also receive a stipend of $1,000 to go towards professional development opportunities, in addition to coordinated professional development through RAY Member Organizations and the Environmental Leadership Program.

Eligibility & How to Apply

Eligible applicants will:

• Come from a racial / ethnic background underrepresented in conservation and demonstrate a commitment to the values of diversity, equity, and inclusion
• Be less than 2 years out of college and have a Bachelor's Degree by July 2019 (we are not considering individuals with graduate degrees at this time) 
• Have not had a full-time job in conservation 
• Have the ability to work in the United States and commit to the entire fellowship

Applications for the 2019 cycle are open and descriptions of Fellowship positions will be added on a rolling basis. Completed applications should include a CV or resume, a letter of support, two essays, and a short answer response. Visit our website at http://www.rayconservationfellows.org for application instructions and deadlines.

Informational Webinars

Applicants may join one of our upcoming informational webinar series to ask questions, learn more about the application process, and hear from a current RAY Fellow. Registration links, webinar dates and times, and featured Fellows can be found here on our website: https://rayconservationfellows.org/informational-webinars-applicants. 

For more information please contact Jordan Williams, Program Manager, RAY Conservation Diversity Fellowship at jordan@elpnet.org / (617) 942-0585.

Data for Black Lives is seeking an enthusiastic, independent and dynamic professional to serve as our Operations Manager. The ideal candidate will have experience creating and maintaining systems, will be organized and detail oriented, and have a shared commitment to our mission. The Operations Manager will be an integral part of the team providing short and long-term strategic vision that supports our maximum effectiveness, efficiency, financial and organizational sustainability.

For more information, or to apply, submit a short statement of interest and a resume that highlights your experiences most relevant to the role: info@d4bl.org with subject “Operations Manager.”
 

WiMLDS is a 501(c)(3) organization. Its mission is to support and promote women and gender minorities who are practicing, studying or are interested in the fields of machine learning and data science. They create opportunities for members to engage in technical and professional conversations in a positive, supportive environment by hosting talks by women and gender minority individuals working in data science or machine learning, as well as hosting technical workshops, networking events and hackathons. We are inclusive to anyone who supports our cause regardless of gender identity or technical background.

Presented by DataCamp, with guest speaker, Brandeis Marshall.

The annual KDD conference is the premier interdisciplinary conference bringing together researchers and practitioners from data science, data mining, knowledge discovery, large-scale data analytics, and big data.

August 4 - 8, 2019
Anchorage, Alaska USA
Dena’ina Convention Center and William Egan Convention Center

The Earth observation for Sustainable Ecosystem and Livelihood group (http://www.ceoe.udel.edu/our-people/profiles/mondalp) at the University of Delaware is seeking a MS student interested in environmental remote sensing to join the MSDS program in Fall 2019. Funding is available through an NSF EPSCoR grant awarded to an interdisciplinary team of researchers examining water in the changing coastal environment in Delaware (http://projectwicced.org/). 

The MS position with a Research Assistantship (RA) provides a competitive stipend of $22,000, a tuition waiver, and subsidized health insurance. The student will work under the direct supervision of Dr. Pinki Mondal (mondalp@udel.edu), and will interact with EPSCoR WiCCED project members and collaborators at the Center for Environmental Monitoring & Analysis (http://cema.udel.edu/). 

The ideal candidate would have a major in any of mathematics, applied mathematics, statistics, computer science or engineering, environmental engineering, or any other field of engineering. For the MSDS program degree requirements, please visit: https://www.msds.udel.edu/curriculum. A strong candidate is either familiar with or interested in geospatial (remote sensing/GIS) applications in environmental sciences. Prior experience in Google Earth Engine (GEE) is a plus, but not mandatory. We are looking for a candidate who has (i) outstanding quantitative skills, (ii) an interest in interdisciplinary research, and (iii) good oral communication and writing skills. The ideal candidate also has attention to detail and willingness and ability to follow instructions carefully and work independently.

Specific RA responsibilities will include (but are not limited to): (1) processing and interpreting time-series of satellite images for Delaware, (2) collecting and analyzing field-level data, (3) assisting investigators with other research-related project activities, and (4) presenting findings at scientific meeting and submitting journal articles. While the RA will assist with the project objectives, he/she will be encouraged to develop his/her own thesis research questions to pursue within the context of the broader project.

Interested applicants should send a brief letter of interest, unofficial transcript, and a copy of their CV (including GPA and GRE scores) via email to Dr. Pinki Mondal (mondalp@udel.edu) by February 22 prior to formally applying to UD Graduate School. Women and underrepresented minorities are strongly encouraged to apply.

This description is taken from: https://bio-link.org/blog/need-math 

Math--how to teach it, how to use it, who needs it, and how to keep it from being a barrier between students and jobs.  These are all topics of discussion at the Needed Math, a National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education Funded Conference.  This conference, held from January 12-15, 2018 brought together employers in three STEM fields (biotechnology, manufacturing technology, and information and communication technology), post-secondary instructors of technical subjects related to those fields and mathematics educators.  Employers surveyed for the Manufacturing Institute's 2014 Skills Gap study report a "sizeable gap" between the talent they need and that available on the job market.  

The basic recommendation from the conference?   The mathematics standards, assessments, and curriculum need to be revisited and revised so as to place greater emphasis on the skills needed to solve the kinds of problems that arise in the real world.  This will also help to avoid the trap of "bad at math" when often the student is not bad at math, but just does not fit well into a curriculum that studies math without a clear application.  

The report is available and very interesting, with Needed Math examples that show quite clearly what employers are looking for. Take a look yourself!