You are here
Harvard Forest REU Symposium Abstract 2016
- Title: Forest Growth and Change Over Time
- Author: Anna C Guerrero (Arizona State University)
- Abstract:
Time can be overlooked as a factor in the development of forest ecosystems, but it is an essential component of forest evolution. The human lifespan— which is relatively short compared to that of a single tree, and strikingly short in relation to an entire forest or landscape— makes it difficult for people to conceptualize the timescale on which trees and forest ecosystems are living and changing. This conceptualization is critical as it will inform and enrich individual experience and insight, scientific study, forest management, and conversations about advocacy and preservation. The temporal element of forests is often considered in detailed study of forestry and ecology, but this concept is integral to the development and wellbeing of forests, and must therefore be translated to a clear and captivating medium for the utilization by all people who depend on trees. In order to personally engage viewers, but still convey useful scientific information, six illustrations were created to trace the development of forest ecosystems and human experience through periods of time that would be significant in both a tree’s ring record and a human’s memory. By examining and connecting the experiences of people and trees and forests in parallel developmental periods, viewers may participate in an emotionally compelling story in which they may use their own human experiences to gain a more intimate and accurate understanding of forest dynamics and development through time, and conversely, to use the experience of trees and forests to enhance their relationships with time, age, and the environment.
- Research Category: Historical and Retrospective Studies
- Figures: meeeeee.JPG
