Abbie W. Anderson
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OVERVIEW

I combine two linked interests: first, the effects of urbanization on all levels of biological organization; and second, the capacity of city-dwellers to build critical knowledge about the ecosystems we inhabit. Within the broad overlap of these interests, a lot of my work so far has focused on citizen science, invasive plants, and birds.

RECENT WORK

While working at the University of Minnesota (2020-2023), I worked with research teams supporting participatory science and science education. Learn more about the projects:
  • Season Watch
  • Pesky Plant Trackers
  • Cover It Up Citizen Science
I enjoy learning from volunteers, which is part of my process to recruit, train, and support observers participating in science. I strived to foster a welcoming community that honors the needs and contributions of all involved.

WHAT I'M LEARNING NOW

EXPERTISE

  • Land acknowledgment practices that move beyond words to action
  • Decolonization of conservation and science
  • Becoming an accomplice for environmental justice
  • Plant communities and identification
  • Phenology
  • Public participation in scientific research (i.e., citizen science, community science)
  • Bird conservation & ecology
  • Science education
  • R, GIS, ArcMap

RESEARCH

  • Cover it up, Using plants to control buckthorn, Program Coordinator at University of Minnesota, 2020-2023
  • Forecasting life cycles of Japanese knotweed and wild parsnip, Program Coordinator at University of Minnesota, 2020-2023
  • Modeling Bird-window Collisions in Core Urban Environments (link to overview), Thesis research at U of MN, 2016-2018
  • Assessing bird collision risk near the U.S. Bank Stadium, Research Assistant with U of MN, September 2016 to July 2019
  • Toward a Center for Citizen Science in Minnesota, Research Assistant with U of MN, September 2016 to May 2017

PUBLICATIONS

  • Loss, S., S. Lao, J.W. Eckles, A.W. Anderson, R.B. Blair, R.J. Turner (2022). Bird-building collisions increase with weather conditions that favor nocturnal migration and with inclement and changing weather. Ornithological Applications.
  • Loss, S., S. Lao, J.W. Eckles, A.W. Anderson, R.B. Blair, R.J. Turner (2020). Inclement Weather and American Woodcock Building Collisions During Spring Migration. Wildlife Biology.
  • Lao, S., B. Robertson, A. Anderson, R. Blair, J. Eckles, R. Turner, S. Loss (2020). The influence of artificial light at night and polarized light on bird-building collisions, Biological Conservation 241
  • Loss, S., S. Lao, J.W. Eckles, A.W. Anderson, R.B. Blair, R.J. Turner (2019). Factors influencing bird-building collisions in the downtown area of a major North American city, PLoS ONE 14(11): e0224164 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0224164.
  • Modeling Bird-window Collisions in Core Urban Environments (2018). Master's thesis, University of Minnesota.
  • Blair, R.B., A.W. Anderson, L. Fortson, and A. Lorek-Straus (2018). Recommendations for the Creation of a Center for Citizen Science, Journal of Extension 56(4): 4FEA4.
  • Publicly archived datasets:
    • Bird Point Counts from Downtown Minneapolis during the 2016 Breeding Season (2018): https://doi.org/10.13020/D69D6M.​
    • Anderson, A.W. and K. McLachlan (2018). Land Cover Shapefiles from Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota: https://doi.org/10.13020/D6111F.

SCIENCE EDUCATOR

  • Instructor at Migratory and Urban Bird Institute, a partnership between the U of MN and US Forest Service International Programs, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023
  • Instructor at Driven to Discover II, Professional Development for Science Educators, U of MN, Summer 2017 & 2018
  • Interviewer at Ecology Fair, U of MN, December 2017-2020
  • Mentor to undergraduate student on honors thesis, 2016-2018
  • Diversifying Involvement in the Natural Resource Community, U of MN, Summer 2016

FIELDWORK

  • Field Tech for Audubon Minnesota, Fall 2017
  • ​​Biology Program Volunteer at Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, March 2015–August 2015​​
  • Field Tech for research on urban Canada Geese in Chicago IL by Southern Illinois University, November 2014–February 2015

COURSEWORK

University of Minnesota:
  • Birds:
    • Analyzing and Designing Change Strategies for the Future of Grassland Birds (FW 8200, 1 credit)
    • Current Topics in Avian Conservation (FW 8200, 1 credit)
    • Introduction to Ornithology (EEB 4134, 4 credits)
  • Statistics:
    • Biometry (FW 4001, 4 credits)
    • Spatial and Temporal Statistics of Ecological Data (ENT 5126, 3 credits): Principles, applications, & methods for drawing inference from observational datasets in ecology, including transformation of non-normally distributed data, mixed models, generalized linear models, model selection techniques, etc.
  • Spatial:
    • GIS for Natural Resources (FNRM 5131, 4 credits): Theory and applications of geographic information science and systems; ArcMap labs; geodatabase design; spatial modeling and analysis using vector & raster data; commonly used datasets (e.g., SSURGO, NWI, NWIS, NLCD, etc.); watershed & surface water modeling
    • Remote Sensing, Geospatial Analysis of Natural Resources & Environment (FNRM 5262, 3 credits): Principles and applications of remotely sensed data; sensor systems and data resolution (spectral, temporal, spatial); land cover analysis (supervised, unsupervised and object-based classification); change analysis; data fusion
    • Spatial Database Design & Administration (GIS 5577, 1 credit): Tools and strategies to create data management plans, query databases, visualize & store data, etc.
  • Other:
    • Preparing Future Conservation & Natural Resource Professionals (FW 8200, 2 credits): Public trust doctrine; legislative and regulatory processes; grants and budget management; NGOs and public sector; community-engagement; facilitation and conflict management

CONFERENCE CO-PRESENTATIONS

  • Anderson, A. (2021). Citizen Science with Noxious Weeds (During a Pandemic and an Uprising). CitSciVirtual, May 5, virtual national conference.
  • Anderson, A. and J. Eckles (2019). Project BirdSafe: Outcomes and Opportunities. Proceedings of Minnesota Ornithologists Union Annual Paper Session, Dec 7, Falcon Heights, MN.
  • Fortson, L. (presenter), A.W. Anderson, R.B. Blair, and A. Lorek-Strauss (2019). So you want to create a Center for Citizen Science … what now? Conference Proceedings of the Citizen Science Association, March 13–17, Raleigh, NC.
  • Lao, S. (presenter), A.W. Anderson, R.B. Blair, J.W. Eckles, B.A. Robertson, R.J. Turner, and S.R. Loss (2018). Investigating the Effect of Polarized Light on Bird Collisions with Buildings. Conference Proceedings of The Wildlife Society, Oct 7–11, Cleveland, OH.
  • Will, T. (presenter), K. Nelson, D. Lambert, L. Elliott, A. Christianson, A. Meyer, H. Ramer, M. Barnes, A. Anderson, and A. Sandler (2016). Change Strategies for the Future of Grassland Birds in the Midwest: A Conservation Deliberation: Conference Proceedings of the Midwest Landscape Conservation Science Symposium, Jan 24–27, Grand Rapids, MI.

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Copyright Abigail Woods Anderson, 2021
Bird favicon by Ho Ching of the Noun Project
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