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Applied Biodiversity Science--U.S.-Mexico Borderlands Conservation
Achievement/Results
David Toledo is an IGERT trainee in the Applied Biodiversity Sciences program at Texas A&M University. His dissertation focuses on identifying key variables that influence land management decisions and biodiversity conservation. His work includes two case studies: A case study in Texas, USA that studies the human dimensions of using prescribed fire to restore rangeland ecosystems in Texas; and the other in Chihuahua, Mexico studying the socio-ecological factors influencing biodiversity conservation in the Janos/Casas Grandes Biosphere Reserve. For his Mexico work, David is collaborating with scientists and two graduate students from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico in Mexico City. David has used focus group meetings, mail surveys, personal interviews, and an ecological simulation model to gather and synthesize data related to this project. Data from both case studies will provide a valuable tool for putting socio-economic beliefs and ecological realities into a context that provides management adaptability and provides information for use in policy making.
Address Goals
The research of ABS-IGERT Trainees provides scientific data and professional collaboration needed to protect biodiversity while also meeting the needs of people. This research integrates data from social and biological sciences, building new understanding in both major research themes of our IGERT: Ecological Functions and Biodiversity, and Communities and Governance.
