TERRE HAUTE —
As the dengue virus worked through Stephen Aldrich’s blood stream, he felt feverish and nauseous. His body ached.
“That was kind of a bummer,” the Indiana State University professor said of getting sick on his first trip to the Amazon.
More than a mosquito bite infected Aldrich on that trip to Brazil. Along with catching dengue, he also caught a bug for the place that continues to be the focus of his research today.
Aldrich, assistant professor of geography in the department of earth and environmental systems, and a team of researchers recently received a more than $157,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to expand his doctoral research on land conflicts affecting the deforestation of the Amazon in Brazil. Of the total, more than $83,000 was marked for ISU. As a doctoral student, Aldrich spent three years conducting fieldwork in Marabá, Brazil, a town he likened to the Wild West. In that area 80 percent of cleared land had been devoted to cattle ranching, which the government encouraged through subsidies.
A unique combination of dispossessed rural poor, large landholders and a quirky Brazilian constitution coalesced to become a danger to the Amazon forests. For many years people eked out livings through sustenance farming, including the collection of first rubber, then Brazil nuts, from trees growing on public lands in the Amazonian forests.
When government officials decided to lease large tracts of the previously public land, wealthy landowners took possession of what had been a communal resource and forced the farmers off the land. The subsistence farmers became known as the landless, the dispossessed. However a quirk in the Brazilian Constitution of 1988 allowed land to be taken away from a large land owner if the owner fails to manage it or the social good.
“The social movements would make a strong argument that it wasn’t a strong producer,” Aldrich said.
The landless began moving onto the private land claiming the owner failed to use it for public good. While it has led to violent clashes between the wealthy landowners and the landless, it also has led to further deforestation as both sides rush to remove trees to show they are using the land.
In his doctoral research, Aldrich found that for every conflict between large land owners and the poor removed from the land, that the Amazon would lose about 60 acres of forest.
“That doesn’t sound like a lot, but that’s per event,” he said.
Through researching newspaper records in Marabá, Aldrich found 5,000 articles reporting on conflicts between property owners and groups moving onto property.
With the NSF grant, Aldrich plans to extend his analysis to look at whether the landless or land owners deforest the most land. He and the team, which includes Cynthia Simmons, an associate professor of geography at Michigan State University, and Eugenio Arima, an assistant professor of geography at the University of Texas-Austin,also plan to evaluate the landscape ecology, where the patches of remaining forest are and if they’re connected to each other.
“The goal of the NSF proposal is to take the analysis and really push it to see how people make decisions about property,” he said.
The deforestation of the Amazon has become an important issue globally since it is known as the earth’s lungs as it works to remove carbon dioxide from the air. With fewer and fewer acres of trees to clear air, the deforestation contributes to global warming.The Amazon also provides a home to a stunning diversity of plants and animals, many of which helped humans derive various medications.
“We derive a lot of benefits, some we see daily and some more abstractly,” Aldrich said. “We will look at all sorts of things and learn why people make the environmental decisions that they do.”
Schools
Professor receives grant to study deforestation in Amazon
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Bruce’s history lessons: Truman’s decision to recognize Israel
This week (May 14) in 1948, at the direction of President Harry Truman, the United States recognized the existence of the newly formed state of Israel, which had declared independence earlier that day. It was, Truman later stated, among the most important decisions of his presidency.
- Reunion listings: May 16, 2013
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Chances and Services for Youth to participate in food program
The Chances and Services for Youth recently announced plans to participate in the Summer Food Service Program.
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South Latin students compete at convention
Terre Haute South Vigo High School Latin students competed with other Indiana schools at the recent state convention at ISU.
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Southwest Parke School Corp. receives eLearning grant
Southwest Parke Community School Corp. has received an Imagining and Creating eLearning grant for the 2013-2014 school year through the Indiana Department of Education.
- Newsmakers: May 16, 2013
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Otter Creek competes in regional Academic Super Bowl
The Otter Creek Academic Super Bowl teams competed in the regional Academic Super Bowl competition on April 27 at Sarah Scott Middle School.
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Riverton Parke FFA teams compete at April 16 contest
Two Riverton Parke FFA Parliamentary Procedure Teams competed at the section competition for the Parliamentary Procedure Demonstration Contest on April 16 at the Indiana FFA Center in Trafalgar.
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Parks offering summer day camp
The Terre Haute Parks and Recreation Department is now accepting registrations for its summer day camp.
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State recognizes counties for improving college success
Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education Teresa Lubbers recognized 26 Indiana counties for working to increase the percentage of Hoosiers with education beyond high school. The counties are members of Indiana’s College Success Coalition, a statewide network focused on improving college access and success.
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College Challenge program earns accreditation
Indiana State University’s College Challenge program for high school students has earned initial accreditation from the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships.
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ISP offers youth an up close look at law enforcement
Most television viewers have seen at least part of a CSI or Law and Order episode. These shows seem to have spurred a new interest in law enforcement and forensics. For more than 40 years the Indiana State Police have been giving young people an up close look at law enforcement through its youth camps program.
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Goals, Pride & Achievements: May 16, 2013
Alyssa A. Barnes of Clinton graduated from Purdue University on Sunday.
She has a bachelor’s degree in hospitality and tourism management, with a minor in psychology. -
Woodrow Wilson students collect funds for animals
The leadership team from Woodrow Wilson Middle School sponsored a week of giving to collect funds and supplies for the Terre Haute Humane shelter.
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Riverton Parke academic bowl team finishes strong
The Riverton Parke English academic bowl team finished as runner-up at the state finals competition on May 4 at Purdue University, and the social studies team swept through all of its last eight questions without a miss to finish third in the contest.
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Turkey Run High School names top 2013 students
Kaleigh Basan has been named valedictorian and Jeff Woods and Kendall Davies are co-salutatorians for the Turkey Run High School Class of 2013.
Graduation ceremonies will be in the high school gymnasium at 11 a.m. May 25 with 36 students receiving their diplomas. -
Bruce’s history lessons: Spring Cleaning 2013
Time for my annual “Spring Cleaning” column, in which I address reader issues and answer “Frequently Asked Questions.”
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Moats gets ISU Rankin Award
Indiana State University has honored Katelynn Moats of Terre Haute with the Rankin Memorial Distinguished Senior Award in recognition of her contributions to the betterment of the university.
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Turkey Run to honor seniors
Turkey Run High School will hold its senior awards and recognition program at 7 p.m. Monday in the ELC room. A reception will be held from 6 to 7 p.m.
The program for freshmen to juniors will be held at 1:32 p.m. May 16 in the high school gymnasium. -
Honey Creek math club earns gold status
Honey Creek Middle School has received Gold Level Status as a participant of the 2013 MATHCOUNTS Club.
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Riverton Parke students bring home art awards
Students from 15 schools in west central Indiana competed in the 34th annual d’Arlier Trust Spring Art Show on April 19-25 in Veedersburg. Four Riverton Parke High School students won a total of nine awards in six of the show’s 20 categories.
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Parke Adult Tutoring Service awards mini-grant
The Parke Adult Tutoring Service has awarded a mini-grant of $270 to Riverton Parke English teacher Mike Lunsford to purchase reading materials for his students.
- Vigo County School Corp. Honor Roll — Middle School, Second Grading Period
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BRUCE’S HISTORY LESSONS: The Civil War: Means versus ends
The Civil War began this week (April 12) in 1861 with the shelling of the Union fort, Fort Sumter, by Confederate troops in South Carolina. Four years later that war ended with the total defeat of the Confederacy, and in the war’s wake many historians have concluded that a Union victory was inevitable given the huge advantages that the Union North had in terms of manpower, weaponry, manufacturing and industrial capacity.
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SMWC honored for ‘Pomeroy Pride’
Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College received a silver award from the “Higher Education Marketing Report” 28th Annual Educational Advertising Awards. The full-page ad publicly announced the launch of the SMWC’s campaign to build a sports and recreation center, titled the “Pomeroy Pride Campaign.”
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ISU students garner awards at ITEEA conference
A group of Indiana State University technology and engineering education students talked to each other over walkie-talkies as they recently went to Columbus, Ohio, in a three-car caravan.
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Indiana State to be recognized for ‘Celebrating Sustainability’
Indiana State University will be recognized in two venues this month as one of 20 colleges and universities nationwide that exemplify the mission of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment to re-stabilize the earth’s climate through education, research and community engagement.
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Pimento reunion dinner set for May 11
The Pimento School reunion dinner will be held May 11 at Hoosier Prairie School. Friendship hour will begin at 5:30 p.m., followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m. A meeting and program will conclude the evening.
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ISU taking applications for Summer Honors program
Indiana State University is accepting applications from talented high school students interested in taking part in this year’s Summer Honors program.
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ISU student selected as a Newman Fellow
Katelynn Taylor, a junior at Indiana State University, is one of 181 student leaders nationwide selected by Campus Compact as 2013 Newman Civic Fellows.
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