Overview of MEDS Capstone projects     Overview of MESM Group projects    

Projects
Year
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Five students posing with their project mentors

Using Historical Ecology to Guide Restoration and Management Planning at Point Conception’s Dangermond Preserve

This project provided a unique opportunity to use history to inform conservation planning. The property has a long history of human land use, with controlled fires set by the Chumash and centuries of ranching under Spanish land grants. Due to the lasting influence of human disturbance on ecosystem structure and function, a comprehensive understanding of land use history is essential to an effective conservation plan. 

Faculty Advisors: Kelly Caylor

Clients: The Nature Conservancy

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Motivating Private-Public Collaboration to Reduce Fire Severity in the Southern Sierra Nevada Mountains

Motivating Private-Public Collaboration to Reduce Fire Severity in the Southern Sierra Nevada Mountains

Faculty Advisors: Christina Tague

Clients: Sierra Resource Conservation District

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Environmental Impacts of Utility-Scale Battery Storage in California

Environmental Impacts of Utility-Scale Battery Storage in California

Faculty Advisors: Roland Geyer

Clients: First Solar, Inc.

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Air-Based Land Management – Assessing Drone and Imaging Tools for the Tejon Ranch Conservancy

Air-Based Land Management – Assessing Drone and Imaging Tools for the Tejon Ranch Conservancy

Faculty Advisors: James Frew

Clients: Tejon Ranch Conservancy

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Better Groundwater Management for Agriculture, Habitat and Society

Better Groundwater Management for Agriculture, Habitat and Society

Faculty Advisors: Ashley Larsen

Clients: Environmental Defense Fund

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Incentivizing Incidental Groundwater Recharge in Teton Valley, Idaho

Incentivizing Incidental Groundwater Recharge in Teton Valley, Idaho

Faculty Advisors: Gary Libecap

Clients: LegacyWorks Group

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The Living Laboratories- Improving Management at Two University of California Natural Reserves

The Living Laboratories- Improving Management at Two University of California Natural Reserves

Faculty Advisors: John Melack

Clients: University of California Natural Reserve System

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Eco-Entrepreneurship: Bluenote: Streamlining Water Quality Monitoring

Eco-Entrepreneurship: Bluenote: Streamlining Water Quality Monitoring

Faculty Advisors: Jeff Dozier, Emily Cotter

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Locating Ocean Acidification Monitoring Gaps and Hotspots within the California Current

Locating Ocean Acidification Monitoring Gaps and Hotspots within the California Current

Faculty Advisors: Bruce Kendall

Clients: West Coast Regional Planning Body

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Creating Effective Fish Refuges: Identifying the Keys for Success

Creating Effective Fish Refuges: Identifying the Keys for Success

Faculty Advisors: Steve Gaines

Clients: The Summit Foundation

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Achieving Carbon Neutrality at UCSB by 2025: A Critical Analysis of Technological and Financial Strategies

Achieving Carbon Neutrality at UCSB by 2025: A Critical Analysis of Technological and Financial Strategies

Clients: UCSB Chancellor's Sustainability Committee

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Eco-Entrepreneurship: An Entrepreneurial Approach to Improving Energy Efficiency in the Industrial Sector

Eco-Entrepreneurship: An Entrepreneurial Approach to Improving Energy Efficiency in the Industrial Sector

Faculty Advisors: Emily Cotter

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An Analysis of Wolf-Livestock Conflict Hotspots and Conflict Reduction Strategies in Northern California

An Analysis of Wolf-Livestock Conflict Hotspots and Conflict Reduction Strategies in Northern California

Faculty Advisors: Ben Halpern

Clients: Defenders of Wildlife

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Developing a Toolkit to Optimize Community Choice Energy Programs

Developing a Toolkit to Optimize Community Choice Energy Programs

Faculty Advisors: Mark Buntaine

Clients: Center for Climate Protection

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Economic Valuation of Southern California Coastal Wetlands

Economic Valuation of Southern California Coastal Wetlands

Faculty Advisors: Andrew Plantinga

Clients: Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project

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Characterizing the Ecological Risk to the Tidewater Goby from Pyrethroid Use in Coastal California

Characterizing the Ecological Risk to the Tidewater Goby from Pyrethroid Use in Coastal California

Faculty Advisors: Arturo Keller

Clients: US Fish and Wildlife Service

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Vessel Speed Reduction, Air Pollution, and Whale Strike Tradeoffs in the Santa Barbara Channel Region

Vessel Speed Reduction, Air Pollution, and Whale Strike Tradeoffs in the Santa Barbara Channel Region

Faculty Advisors: Steve Gaines

Clients: Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District, NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, NOAA - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

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Securing Water Rights from Retiring Coal-Fired Power Plants for Instream Flow

Securing Water Rights from Retiring Coal-Fired Power Plants for Instream Flow

Faculty Advisors: James Salzman

Clients: The Nature Conservancy

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Eco-Entrepreneurship: KINN: An Assessment of Apparel Toxins' Impact on Mother and Newborn Endocrine-System Health

Eco-Entrepreneurship: KINN: An Assessment of Apparel Toxins' Impact on Mother and Newborn Endocrine-System Health

Faculty Advisors: Matt Potoski, Emily Cotter

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Testing the Economic Feasibility of Seaweed Aquaculture in Southern California

Testing the Economic Feasibility of Seaweed Aquaculture in Southern California

Faculty Advisors: Hunter Lenihan

Clients: Santa Barbara Mariculture, Sustainable Aquaculture Research Center