UW welcomes first EarthLab executive director

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Ben Packard, Harriet Bullitt Endowed Executive Director of EarthLab.

The University of Washington is pleased to welcome Ben Packard as the Harriet Bullitt Endowed Executive Director of EarthLab. EarthLab is the UW-wide initiative that harnesses the power of collaboration to tackle thorny environmental challenges including climate change, ocean health, natural hazards and healthy ecosystems. Key to EarthLab’s success will be building relationships between the University and public, private and nonprofit sectors.

“I am excited about the ambition of EarthLab to be a catalyzing force outside of the UW, the openness to create a new model for change and the willingness to build something different on the strong foundation of work already happening at the UW,” says Packard, who most recently served as global managing director of corporate engagement at The Nature Conservancy. “It’s an incredible opportunity.”

As the inaugural executive director, Packard will be responsible for determining the early success and impact of EarthLab, working strategically within and beyond the University to promote new learning and action to address environmental challenges. He will help build the relationships that enable EarthLab to bring the exceptional research and science at the University to bear on a range of environmental matters.

Before his tenure at The Nature Conservancy, Packard led the internationally recognized environmental sustainability efforts at Starbucks. His experience has allowed him to work across sectors, building new and often unexpected partnerships that lead to unique strategies for problem-solving. Packard has a track record of using innovative approaches to address complex environmental challenges and offer robust solutions.

“I was immediately thrilled to see Ben put his name forward,” says Lisa Graumlich, dean and Mary Laird Wood Professor at the College of the Environment. “When I think about the traits that will make the EarthLab director successful, they are numerous and not always found in the same person. Ben is that rare example of someone who can take his passion and build the right bridges to unlock innovative thinking around environmental solutions. He is just the person to launch this effort.”

Packard looks forward to joining with UW faculty, staff and students to come up with systemic solutions that demand deeper collaboration across sectors and disciplines than we even know today. Beyond that, he is eager to lead an endeavor that has not been tried before.

“I am very excited about what the UW can do to drive change in how we interact with our environment and build something that has lasting impact. The academic sector has a lot to offer in this realm,” Packard says.

 

 

 

Reconnecting with nature: a research agenda from Center for Creative Conservation working group

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At a time of increasing disconnectedness from nature, scientific interest in the potential health benefits of connecting with nature has grown. Research in recent decades has yielded substantial evidence of nature’s health benefits, but large gaps still remain. Lead by Howard Frumkin, the Center for Creative Conservation’s Nature and Health working group published a proposed research agenda on nature contact and health. The paper exhaustively reviews the existing literature on the health benefits of being in nature and identifies seven major domains in which further research is needed:

  1. mechanistic biomedical studies look at how nature improves human health, such as by facilitating physical activity, a sense of wonder, and social connections
  2. exposure science develops methods and metrics, both quantitative and qualitative, for measuring what counts as “nature contact” and a meaningful “dose”
  3. epidemiology of health benefits examines the health outcomes of being in nature, from reducing pain and stress to reducing the risk of getting cancer
  4. diversity and equity considerations underscore the need to account for cultural differences and inequities in understanding the nature-health connection, from unequal access to nature, to disparate ways of valuing nature, to the phenomenon of “green gentrification”
  5. technological nature refers to technologies that mediate the nature experience, such as apps and virtual reality, and the question of whether these have the same or different health benefits as being in real natural places
  6. economic and policy studies refer to cost-benefit analyses of the health benefits, avoided medical costs, and other services provided by ecosystems, and policy implications for conservation and planning
  7. implementation science develops and evaluates the tools and actions that best deliver the benefits of nature, such as how to best design parks, trails and schools, and how doctors can best “prescribe nature.”

UW to host Interior Department’s Northwest Climate Adaptation Science Center

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The University of Washington is the new host for the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Northwest Climate Adaptation Science Center. Boise State University, the University of Montana, Washington State University and Western Washington University are also new partners in the Northwest CASC university consortium.

These five universities were selected as the CASC host and consortium partners after an open competition and extensive review by scientific experts. They will work as part of the collaborative network that defines the Northwest CASC. This includes working closely with federal, state and tribal entities, including those responsible for managing and protecting the land, water and natural resources of the Northwest, to develop actionable climate science and decision support tools.

Eco, Shelter 2 and Walden win awards at EarthGames on Tap

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Three earth-friendly video games won awards at the Center for Creative Conservation’s inaugural EarthGames on Tap event, which took place May 18, 2017 in Seattle. Twelve stunning “earthgames” were entered into the games showcase. A panel of three judges carefully evaluated the games based on their potential to have an environmental impact and the quality of their game play. In the judges’ competition, Shelter 2 won first place and Walden won second place.

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