2023 Outstanding Paper in Landscape Ecology Award
Steven DiFalco, Dr. Debarchana Ghosh, and Dr. Anita Morzillo
Steven DiFalco, Dr. Anita Morzillo, and Dr. Debarchana Ghosh
The North American Regional Chapter of the International Association for Landscape Ecology (IALE-NA) has selected the paper by Steven DiFalco and colleagues, published in the journal of Landscape Ecology, as the recipient of the 2023 Outstanding Paper in Landscape Ecology Award. The award was received at the IALE-NA annual meeting, in Riverside California, March 19-23rd. Members of the IALE-NA are encouraged to nominate candidate papers on the topic of landscape ecology (published in any journal) and the Awards Committee selects the winner.
The DiFalco at al. paper (“Interpolating residents attitudes towards exurban roadside forest management”) examines the spatial autocorrelation patterns and performs spatial interpolation of resident attitudes toward roadside management of vegetation in Connecticut, USA. The nominator for the award recognized the paper as outstanding since it is one of the first papers to characterize spatial autocorrelation patterns of attitude metrics related to nature resource management in a way that illustrates and explains the interrelationships of decision-making processes and outcomes in landscape change across scales. The nominator notes that, “this paper greatly inspires [them] as a scholar in this field” and “has been accessed 72 times in the first two months of being available.” Steven DiFalco highlights “social processes with exurban areas are complex, and their patterns are not the same as in urban and rural areas. These unique characteristics that form exurban communities are important to consider while developing future human dimensions studies. Attitudes varied at multiple scales which suggests the areas we surveyed are different from each other. This is important for land managers, specifically those that work across geopolitical boundaries, where preferences for natural resource management actions may greatly vary”.
Prior to graduate studies, Steven DiFalco worked in public parks as a land manager focused on habitat restoration. A major component of his work consisted of engaging with and teaching visitors about natural resource management. Figuring out how to build acceptance for management actions led Steven to the field of human dimensions for a Master’s program.
Steven DiFalco is a MS alumna of Dr. Anita Morzillos’ lab at the University of Connecticut, which focuses on human dimensions of natural resources. Co-author Dr. Debarchana Ghosh is a faculty member of the University of Connecticut. The paper was a chapter of Steven DiFalco’s MS thesis focused on the spatial analysis of resident attitudes toward roadside vegetation management as part of the Stormwise program. Steven DiFalco is currently the GIS and Land Data Manager for Scenic Hudson.
Full reference:
DiFalco, S., Morzillo, A. T., & Ghosh, D. (2022). Interpolating resident attitudes toward exurban roadside forest management. Landscape Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-022-01537-2
The North American Regional Chapter of the International Association for Landscape Ecology (IALE-NA) has selected the paper by Steven DiFalco and colleagues, published in the journal of Landscape Ecology, as the recipient of the 2023 Outstanding Paper in Landscape Ecology Award. The award was received at the IALE-NA annual meeting, in Riverside California, March 19-23rd. Members of the IALE-NA are encouraged to nominate candidate papers on the topic of landscape ecology (published in any journal) and the Awards Committee selects the winner.
The DiFalco at al. paper (“Interpolating residents attitudes towards exurban roadside forest management”) examines the spatial autocorrelation patterns and performs spatial interpolation of resident attitudes toward roadside management of vegetation in Connecticut, USA. The nominator for the award recognized the paper as outstanding since it is one of the first papers to characterize spatial autocorrelation patterns of attitude metrics related to nature resource management in a way that illustrates and explains the interrelationships of decision-making processes and outcomes in landscape change across scales. The nominator notes that, “this paper greatly inspires [them] as a scholar in this field” and “has been accessed 72 times in the first two months of being available.” Steven DiFalco highlights “social processes with exurban areas are complex, and their patterns are not the same as in urban and rural areas. These unique characteristics that form exurban communities are important to consider while developing future human dimensions studies. Attitudes varied at multiple scales which suggests the areas we surveyed are different from each other. This is important for land managers, specifically those that work across geopolitical boundaries, where preferences for natural resource management actions may greatly vary”.
Prior to graduate studies, Steven DiFalco worked in public parks as a land manager focused on habitat restoration. A major component of his work consisted of engaging with and teaching visitors about natural resource management. Figuring out how to build acceptance for management actions led Steven to the field of human dimensions for a Master’s program.
Steven DiFalco is a MS alumna of Dr. Anita Morzillos’ lab at the University of Connecticut, which focuses on human dimensions of natural resources. Co-author Dr. Debarchana Ghosh is a faculty member of the University of Connecticut. The paper was a chapter of Steven DiFalco’s MS thesis focused on the spatial analysis of resident attitudes toward roadside vegetation management as part of the Stormwise program. Steven DiFalco is currently the GIS and Land Data Manager for Scenic Hudson.
Full reference:
DiFalco, S., Morzillo, A. T., & Ghosh, D. (2022). Interpolating resident attitudes toward exurban roadside forest management. Landscape Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-022-01537-2
