Research
- Research Activities
- Agricultural Experiment Station (AES)
- Caribbean Exploratory Research Center (CERC)
- Alliance for Responsive Investment in Children’s Health: Virgin Islands (A RICH VI)
- Caribbean Green Technology Center (CGTC)
- Center for Marine & Environmental Studies (CMES)
- Eastern Caribbean Center (ECC)
- Emerging Caribbean Scientists (ECS)
- Etelman Observatory
- Institutional Research
- Title III and Sponsored Programs
- Research & Public Service (RPS)
- Research & Technology Park (RTPark)
- Research Day
- VI-EPSCoR
- Water Resources Research Institute (WRRI)
2015 VI-EPSCoR Conference
Mare Nostrum Caribbean – Programs and Partnerships – St. Croix, USVI
The 2015 VI-EPSCoR Annual Conference took place at the Renaissance Carambola Beach Resort on St. Croix, USVI, on May 26 and 27. Optional field trips were conducted on May 28.
The conference, which was free and open to the public was titled “Mare Nostrum Caribbean (Our Caribbean Sea) – Programs and Partnerships.” The title is from the VI-EPSCoR’s $20 million National Science Funded grant project of the same name that extends from 2014 through 2019. The conference introduced various components of the “Mare Nostrum Caribbean” project to the St. Croix community. Presenters highlighted existing partnerships and explored opportunities for new ones.
This project implements coral reef science in service to ecological stewardship and works to find the best ways to improve coral reef sustainability in a region threatened by overfishing, marine and terrestrial pollution, sedimentation, invasive species, and climate change. Conference sessions focused on coral reef research, emerging research, workforce development, cyber infrastructure, outreach and education, and citizen science.
Keynote presentations were made by Dr. Rick Nemeth, UVI research professor of Zoology/Marine Biology, on the Brewers Bay Project Marine Science Research, and by Dr. Sandra Roman, interim dean of the College of Science and Mathematics, and Karissa Poszywak, VI Department of Education STEM director, on workforce development. Topics discussed included, conservation of fisheries, parasite ecology, workforce development, the oceanography of Biolum Bay and lionfish.
See the following links for contributions from individual presenters as well general Annual Conference information.
Conference Presentations:
- 2015 Conference Slide Show - (PDF-4.5 MB - Download for Automated Presentation)
- Dr. Richard Nemeth – Keynote, Project Overview – (PDF-6.5 MB)
- Erinn Muller – Coral Disease Dynamics in the USVI – (PDF-5.7 MB)
- Bernard Castillo – Water Quality for Bioluminescent Mangrove Lagoon in St. Croix, USVI – (PDF-1.8 MB)
- Jessica Keller – Groundwater and Sediment analyses of a mangrove swamp in St. Thomas, USVI – (PDF-2.9 MB)
- Dr. Sandra Romano – STEM Workforce Development Through Higher Education – (PDF-.5 MB)
- Karissa Poszywak – STEM Workforce Development at the K-12 Level – (PDF-2 MB)
- Mark Boardman – Thoughts on How to Sustain a Successful Citizen Science Program – (PDF-.5 MB)
General Information:
- 2015 Conference UVI News Release
- 2015 Conference Invitation (PDF)