| Title: | Associate Professor |
| Dept: | Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences |
| Office: | SR 279,280 |
| Phone: | 216-687-3979, 216-543-5138 |
| Fax: | 216-687-6972 |
| Email: | B.WALTON@csuohio.edu |
| Web: | http://bgesweb.artscipub.csuohio.edu/faculty/walton/ |
| Address: | 2121 Euclid Ave. SR 279,280, Cleveland, OH 44115 |
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| Education: | ||||||||
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Ph.D., Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, 1988
M.S., Biology, George Washington University, 1984 B.S., Zoology, George Washington University, 1980 | ||||||||
| Brief Bio: | ||
| I am an ecologist and evolutionary biologist with interests in the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem function, and the impact of human-activity on that relationship. My research has emphasized the role of amphibians and reptiles in ecosystems, but my students and I have worked on projects involving deer, small mammals, birds, and insects as well. I also have a strong commitment to conservation of biodiversity and environmental issues. Hence, my research often has applied conservation and resource management components, with a particular focus on urban ecosystems.
I live in Orange Village, OH with my wife, two sons, two cats,and a pond full of frogs and turtles. | ||
| Creative and Activities: | ||
| (i) Principal Investigator and Program Director, Northeast Ohio Ecosystem Consortium. Funded by the Urban Long-Term Research Areas (ULTRA) program of the National Science Foundation and US Forest Service. The NEOECO project supports interdisciplinary research on the socio-ecological dynamics of urban parklands and the revitalization of urban neighborhoods through development providing sustainable ecosystem services.
(ii) Director, Environmental Institute, Cleveland State University. Responsibilities include developing of inter-disciplinary research collaborations within and beyond the University, establishing partnerships with public and private sector, public outreach and consultation with municipal and state agencies, linkage to K-12 science education community, and coordination of environmental degree programs across campus. (iii) Director of summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates Site emphasizing urban stream ecology, funded by the National Science Foundation. (iv) Director of program for research experiences and development of science inquiry curricula for K-12 teachers and high school students emphasizing urban stream ecology, funded by Cleveland and Gund Foundations and the Ohio Board of Regents. (iv) Director of interdisciplinary research project studying effects of urban landscape change on stream ecology supported by the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, through funds from US EPA ($125,000) and U.S. Clean Water Act, Section 319. (vi) Developed interdisciplinary, multi-lingual curriculum in conservation biology, entitled "International Perspectives in Conservation Biology," U.S. Department of Education, Title VI grant. (vii) Founder of the Cuyahoga River Watershed Project, a multi-institutional, interdisciplinary consortium to study urbanized ecosystems within the Cuyahoga River. Funding for project activities and facilities exceeded. (ix) Co-founder of the Woodlake Environmental Field Station in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park and Co-PI for a field station planning grant through the NSF Field Station and Marine Laboratories Program. | ||
| Research Interests: | ||
| My research is stuctured around two principal themes: (1) the role of predators in the ecological function of forest-floor ecosystems; and (2) social and ecological interactions within parks and other greenspaces in urban ecosystems. The first theme uses laboratory and long-term field experiments to explore the roles of abiotic factors and species interactions in determining the structure, energy and nutrient flows within the food web of the forest-floor. Current projects within this theme are investigating theoretical predictions regarding the role of predators as agents of stability in food webs and the impact of climate change and invasive species on food web dynamics. The second theme examines how social and cultural influences on human behavior influence ecological structure and function of greenspaces in urban settings. Work within this theme is conducted through the Northeast Ohio Ecosystem Consortium (NEOECO) of which I am the director. NEOECO is a partnership among many ecological and social scientists, natural resource managers, urban planners and landscape designers. This project, funded by the National Science Foundation and the US Forest Service, is investigating scientific approaches to urban park management and re-development strategies for vacant urban lands that promote both ecological and social well-being. | ||
| Teaching Areas: | ||
| Conservation Biology, Community Ecology, Ecology, Environmental Science, Physiological Ecology, Population Biology, Evolutionary Biology, Physiology, Stream Ecology, Urban Ecology, Vertebrate Functional Morphology and Evolution | ||
| Professional Affiliations: | ||
| American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Soiety of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists American Society of Naturalists Consortium of Universities for Advancement of Hydrologic Science (CSU institutional representative) Declining Amphibian Populations Task Force Great Lakes-Northern Forest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CSU institutional representative) International Association for Great Lakes Research National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, Section on Fish and Wildlife Resources (CSU institutional representative) Organization of Biological Field Stations | ||
| Professional Experience: | ||
| 2006-Present Director, Environmental Institute, Cleveland State University
2000 Research Director (Interim), Center for Environmental Science,Technology, and Policy, Cleveland State University 1996-Present Associate Professor, Department of Biology, Cleveland State University. 1990-1996 Assistant Professor, Department of Biology, Cleveland State University. 1984-1986 Graduate Teaching Assistant, University of Chicago. 1988-1990 Postdoctoral Researcher, University of California, Irvine, CA. 1980-1983 Graduate Teaching Assistant, George Washington University | ||
| University Service: | ||
| Faculty Senate
Nominating Committee, College of Science and Health Professions Graduate Committee for Curriculum and Academic Standards Undergraduate Committee on Curriculum and Academic Affairs Departmental Safety Committee. Graduate Committee on Teaching Assistantship Awards Faculty Recording Secretary, 1991-1999. University Research Council (current) Chair, College of Science Curriculum Committee, 2005-2006 Member, Board of Directors, Woodlake Environmental Field Station (current) Member, Internal Advisory Board, University Center for Environmental Science, Technology, and Public Policy, 1997-2005. Faculty Senate, 2004-2005 Member, Graduate Council, 2003-2004 Committee on Curriculum and Instruction, College of Arts and Sciences, 2003-2004 Member, Committee on Graduation, Convocation, and Assembly, 2001-2002 Member, University Research Council, 2000-2001 Member, University Curriculum Committee, 1998-1999 Member, Graduate College Admissions and Academic Standards Committee, Graduate College, 1998-1999 Member, Graduate Faculty Review Committee, Graduate College, 1993-1995 Member, Budget and Planning Committee, College of Arts and Sciences, 1993-1995 Member, Strategic Planning Committee, College of Arts and Sciences, 1993-1995 | ||
| Professional Service: | ||
| Associate Editor, Urban Ecosystems
Member, Mid-Atlantic Chapter, Ecological Society of America Member, Urban Ecology Section, Ecological Society of America Reviewer for grant proposals for National Science Foundation Reviewer for professional journals: American Journal of Physiology, American Naturalist, Copeia, Evolution, Herpetologica, Journal of Herpetology, Landscape and Urban Planning, Physiological Zoology, Oecologia, Ohio Academy of Sciences, Urban Ecosystems, West Virginia Academy of Sciences, Zoo Biology. Judge, Robert Jaeger Student Paper Award, Herpetologists League, July 2006 | ||
| Community Service: | ||
| Director, Urban Stream Scholars Program for training high school teachers to teach urban ecological curricula. Funded by the Ohio Board of Regents
Doan Brook Study Committee (an advisory group developing restoration plans for a regional small stream watershed). Technical and Science Subcommittee, Doan Brook watershed Committee Ohio Conservation Alliance Workshop Participant, Interpretive and educational programming plan for the Cuyahoga National Park | ||
| Research Grants: | ||
| "Parks and Vacant Lands as Mechanisms of Social and Ecological Stability in the Cleveland Urban Ecosystem," US National Science Foundation and US Forest Service, Urban Long-Term Research Areas Grant, 9/15/09 - 5/30/2013.
"Urban Stream Scholars", Ohio Board of Regents Improving Teachers Quality Grant. "REU Site: Urbanization Impacts on Stream Ecosystems - An Integrated Training Experience for Undergraduate Researchers", Renewal, National Science Foundation. "NSF DDIG: Interactions among Salamander and Arthropod Predators in Forest-Floor Food Webs." National Science Foundation, Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant (with C. Hickerson, doctoral student). "Cleveland State University Green Building Design Project," Gund Foundation. "Urbanization Impacts on Stream Ecosystems - A Theme for Linking Research and Secondary School Education in NE Ohio," CSU President's Initiative. "Acquisition of a Plant Growth Facility of Research, Training and Education", U.S. National Science Foundation, (Co-PI with T. Mal [PI], J. Wolin, H. Van Keulen). "REU Site: Urbanization Impacts on Stream Ecosystems - An Integrated Training Experience for Undergraduate Researchers," U.S. National Science Foundation. "Urbanization Impacts on Stream Ecosystems - An Integrated Training Experience for Undergraduate Researchers and Teachers," CSU President's Initiative. "Development of Progress Indicators and End Points to Guide Urban Stream Restoration Efforts," (Statewide analysis) Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, through the US EPA. "Development of Progress Indicators and End Points to Guide Urban Stream Restoration Efforts," (Analysis of Cuyahoga Watershed data) Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, through the US EPA National Risk Management Laboratory. "Long-Term Amphibian Monitoring in the Maya Mountains of Belize: Site Selection, Protocol Development and Initial Inventories," Seed grant from the Declining Amphibian Populations Task Force. "Re-Introduction of Fish and Amphibians in the Doan Brook Watershed," Doan Brook Study Committee, Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District(with Co-PI Miles Coburn, John Carroll University. "Collaborative Planning for the Woodlake Environmental and Bath Field Stations," National Science Foundation(with M. Tumeo). "Web Site and Multimedia Resource Development for Core Courses in Organismal, Evolutionary, and Population Biology," CSU Teaching Enhancement Award(with R. Krebs) "Preliminary study of the performance of standard biotic metrics in urbanized watersheds," Lake Erie Protection Fund. "International Perspectives in Conservation Biology," U.S. Dept. of Education. "Cuyahoga River Watershed Project," CSU PRIMES grant program. Subcontractor, "Respiration vs. growth: interindividual differences in energy allocation". National Science Foundation BSR 89-18054. National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Award, BSR 87-14960. | ||